Global Distribution System - Types, Characteristics and Functions

This article provides an overview of Global Distribution System (GDS) used in the travel industry. It covers the types of GDS such as Galileo, Amadues, Sabre and Worldspan. It also explains the uses of GDS in airline, hotel, travel agency and car rental. Additionally, it discusses e-ticketing in airline industry and its advantages and disadvantages.

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Global Distribution System
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1. Introduction of Global Distribution System
GDS, commonly known as Global Distribution System is basically a system of
computerized network that is operated and owned by companies, who are capable of
establishing transaction in between the service providers of travel industries. The travel
industries that use Global Distribution System are the airlines, car rental agencies, hotels, and
the travel agencies (Taneja, 2017). GDS uses real-time inventory for getting the actual number
of rooms that are available presently, and the real number of cars that is presently available with
the service providers. The travel agencies support the GDS system so that they can provision
the services that are related to traveling to their customers. GDS is a computer network as well
as a reservation tool that is needed for the hotel inventory and rates for the travel agents. The
GDS helps all the agents to make online booking. GDS also known as Automatic Reservation
System or as Computerized Reservation System (CRS) that helps various travelling segments
as well as serves different companies such as hotels, airports, airlines, railways, cruise lines,
and companies of car rental.
2. Types of GDS
History and uses of Galileo
Galileo is identified as an international global technology leader that is diversified. The
main business of Galileo GDS is to provide global distribution electronically for travel industries
by computerized automatic reservation system, that leads to innovative solutions based on
internet and products that are leading edge. The technology of Galileo is a very innovative
technology (Law et al., 2015). With the increase of more demand of web-based travel, Galileo
has established new relationships withal the tools in internet and all the services that are related
to the corporate world. Galileo is known as value added distributor of the travel inventory that is
dedicated to the supporting travel agency and the corporate customer by expanding the choice
of the traveler.
History and uses of Amadues

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Amadues was founded in the year 1987 by Iberia, SAS, Lufthansa and Air France, is the
youngest companies of all four companies that serves GDS. This is the leading GDS system as
well as technology provider that serves the sales, distribution needs, and sales that are related
to world tourism and travel industries (Shaw, 2016). The comprehensive database and network
data of Amadues is one of the largest company in Europe that serves more than 87,000
locations of travel agencies and serves almost 12,500 sales offices of airlines in about 250
markets globally. The system provides access to about 80,000 hotels and about 60 car agency
companies that serves about 54,000 locations as well as other groups that provide rail, cruise,
tour operators, and insurance companies.
History and uses of Sabre
For almost 40 years, there are many innovations that are developed by the Sabre and
then transforming the their business to travel. For Sabre reservation system that was
established in the year 1960, the company implemented management system in the year 1980.
Sabre also leads to websites of travelling today around world and has implemented all the travel
industries (Gillespie & Riddle, 2015). In the year 1996, Sabre became the parent company of
AMR with legal entity that is followed initializing public offering successfully. The Sabre
company represented almost 45 countries with a leading provider of reservation technology for
travelling industries as well as provides many innovative products that enables travelling
services and commerce. Sabre also enhances operations for airlines. Sabre has an online
traveling website known as Trevelocity.com. Sabre is also a provider of travel procurement that
is web based that includes purchasing of airplanes, cars, and hotels and also provides services
such as planning and meeting.
History and uses of Worldspan
Worldspan was founded in the year 1990 on 7th Feb that was originally possessed by
Delta Airlines Inc., American Airlines Inc., and Northwest Airlines. By the tear 1995, the internet
technology was greatly advanced by the travel industry (Wensveen et al., 2018). By then,
Worlspan has developed all the strategies of travelling, services that were needed and the
solutions to ensure the long-term success of the company. Electronic distribution for informstion
on trvelling, internet products, and the connectivity are all provided by the Worldspan. The
Worldspan also provided e-commerce capabilities for providers of travel services and the
corporations involved.

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The Worldspan was considered as a legacy of not well known industries. In the year
2001, LLC was launched on Internet with the help of Worldspan as its engine for internet
booking (Belobaba, Odoni & Barnhart, 2015). In the year 2002, Worldspan was the first
company to introduce a multi-server technology based company in a revolutionary way that
offers an unprecedented selection of all pricing options to their customers.
3. Diversity of GDS(400)
Uses of GDS in Airline
The airline uses the system the Global Distribution system for booking of tickets online.
The bookings of airline tickets are to be based on internet. The airline system uses the GDS
system for finding the real time booking status for all the tickets that are booked. The airline
online booking also helps their customers to know about cost of their tickets and ensures lowest
cost of tickets.
Uses of GDS in Hotel
Global Distribution System in a hotel industry help to increase the revenue of the
business. The revenue increase tremendously because of GDS that involves information of
hotels, availability of rooms, rates for the rooms, and location of the hotel (Forister et al., 2015).
GDS helps to maximize the bookings of the hotels and reach the travelling markets more easily.
GDS reduces the cost of booking a hotel and the managers of hotel can uncover a new market
for promoting their products in the market.
Uses of GDS in Travel Agency
The GDS network helps the travel company, agents, as well as their customers to
access all the rates of reservation, inventories, and scheduling at lowest price. The GDS system
also helps the customers to book tickets online that helps the customers to book online tickets.
Uses of GDS in Car Rental
Many products are used by the GDS system that are very efficient to the market. One of
such product is the car rental service (Limmathurotsakul et al., 2016). cars can be booked as

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rentals that is very easy to use in real time interface. The Global Distribution System helps the
customer to work efficiently and effectively to increase the bookings of the car for both personal
as well as official work around the world.
4. Characteristics of Galileo(200)
There are many characteristics of Galileo. The characteristics are as follows:
 Maximum number of buyers can be reached with the help of Galileo GDS.
 Increase the revenues.
 Increase the efficiency.
 Lowers the operating cost.
 Increase productivity.
 Expands the customer’s channels of choice.
 Point of scale increased (Kraemer et al., 2015).
 Galileo customizes innovative solutions.
 New marketing opportunities are being captured by Galileo.
 Allows real time inventory and the contents of the system.
The Galileo GDS generally provides booking tools and content to fulfill the demand of the travel
professionals.
5. Functions of GDS(300)
Uses of E-ticketing in airline industry-
E-Ticketing is commonly known as electronic ticketing is a digital ticket that can be
purchased online and is equivalent to a paper ticket. E-ticket is mostly associated with the
tickets of airline (Kotabe & Helsen, 2015). There are electronic tickets for rail transport that are
usually known as transit pass or travel card. The electronic ticketing system is considered to be
a more efficient way of purchasing ticket, processing the ticket and marketing for industries of
railways, airlines and other entertainment industries.

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When a reservation is being completed online, the airline company keeps a record of the
ticket that is purchased in its reservation system. Customers can get a print out copy of the
ticket after the e-ticket is generated. The main advantage of e-ticket is that it provides airline
tickets at lowest price available and the customer can get many copies of the electronic ticket
receipt. The e-ticket shows all the details of terms and conditions for travelling showing the form
of payment, and the baggage allowance that a particular airline allows.
Advantages and disadvantages of E-ticketing
Advantages:
1. There are many advantages that an airline system provides. The airline system provides
tickets at a cheaper rate (Messina et al., 2015).
2. As the ticket is online, there is no chance of losing the ticket. The booking details is kept
on the computer system of airline company.
3. The processing of time can be reduced by electronic ticketing as it avoids visiting the
ticket counter and keeps record all the details of the passenger.
Disadvantages:
1. After all the whole process depend son system and Internet. If the system crashes or
there is in interruption at the time of payment, the customer can lose information from
the web or from the system (Liu & Zipser, 2015).
2. There is a fear of change in electronic ticket system.
3. No way to keep traditional ticket collection.

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