Contemporary Issues in the Tourism Sector: The Impact of ICT

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CONTEMPORARY ISSUES

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................................2
DESCRIPTION........................................................................................................................3
CONCLUSION...................................................................................................................... 11
REFERENCES.......................................................................................................................12
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INTRODUCTION
Information and communication technology (ICT) may be defined as the extended term of
information technology which is responsible for the unified communication and integration
of telecommunications. Information and communication technology is the combination of
components and infrastructure that helps in enabling modern communication. The main aim
of information and communication technology is to provide better communication and
networking to the industries that will help them in business development and in earning a
profit. The tourism sector is one of the biggest sectors growing rapidly in the world and is
responsible for providing excellent services to the tourist. Tourism can be defined as the
cultural, social and economic phenomenon which involves the movement of people to
different places and countries for professional or personal purpose. The technology and
communication play an important role in the growth and development of the tourism sector
and also in resolving the contemporary issues faced by the tourism sector.
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DESCRIPTION
TOURISM INDUSTRY
The tourism industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the world and responsible for
providing excellent services to the tourist and citizens of the country. The main services
provided by sector are accommodation, food and beverage, transportation, recreation and
entertainment and travel services. There are many types of tourism such as adventure travel,
medical tourism, ecotourism, cultural tourism, religious tourism and sustainable tourism. The
information and communication technology played a vital role in the business expansion and
development of the sector with the help of new technologies and communication. There are
many challenges faced by the tourism industry that degrades the performance of the sector
and so the sector adopted the communication technology that contributed to the growth and
progress of the sector. The challenges may be related to the social, environmental, political
and technological change that impacts the business (Fang et al., 2016).
CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES FACED BY THE TOURISM SECTOR
Social issues
Social issues related to the impact of socialism on the local people of the country and on the
tourism sector. There are many challenges that the tourism company needs to face such as
cultural awareness, religion, security and lifestyles of the people. Different people belong
from different religion and culture that affects the socialism of the tourist place as most of the
time the tourist does not feel comfortable with the culture and religion and that affect the
tourist experience as well as the business of tourism sector. For example, Qatar is one of the
rapidly growing tourism countries in the world but the tourism business of the country is
impacted due to the religion as Qatar is an Islamic country an so the rules and regulations of
the country are different from other countries that impact the tourism of the country as the
tourist not always belong from the same religion and thus not feel comfortable that impacts
the tourism within the country (De Grosbois, 2016).
Political issues
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The political conditions are not always the same as the country and world. The change in the
political parties of the country changes the rules and regulation of the country and thus
impacts the tourism of the country. Most of the time the conflicts between the parties impact
tourism as the tourist resist tourism in the country due to the fear of safety and security. Also,
the change in rules and regulation of the tourism sector also impacts tourism as every tourist
belongs from different religion and background. The decrement in tourism directly impacts
the economy of the country which is one of the biggest challenges for the tourism sector
(Banfield, 2017).
Environmental issues
The environmental issues related to the crowding of people, pollution and climate change.
The sudden increase in the tourist impacts the lives of the local people and also the
environment of the country. The local people get disturbed due to the sudden increment in the
tourist and that affect their employment and lifestyle. The environment of the country is also
affected by tourism as it increases the pollution within the country and affects the health of
the local people and also of the tourist. To reduce the impact of pollution on maintaining the
health and safety of the tourist and local people became one of the major challenges for the
tourism sector (Alonso-Almeida et al., 2018).
Economic issues
Economic issues related to the economy of the country. The growth in the economy of the
tourism sector contributes to the economy of the country. The economy of the tourism sector
depends on the rate of tourism in the country. Tourism is impacted due to the policies of
countries such as taxation and tourism laws. As not all tourists belong form same background
and thus impact the rate of tourism in the country. The economy of the country is directly
proportional to the rate of tourism. If the tourist place is more popular than no doubt it will
contribute to the development and growth of the economy of the country (Pratt, 2015).
Overcoming the challenges becomes a major task for the tourism sector as overcoming the
challenges contributes to the development and growth of tourism. The tourism sector needs to
adopt proper strategies and methods that help in overcoming the challenges and the impact of
the issues directly affects the business of tourism and the economy of the country. The
improvement in the services and maintenance of the factors will help the sector in the growth
and expansion of the business and attracts more and more tourist. There are many methods
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that the tourism sector can use for overcoming challenges such as information and
communication technology that provides new ways to overcome the issues. The information
and technology will help the tourism sector in staying connected with new technologies that
help the country in improving tourism. The development in technology brings a revolution in
the tourism industry as most of the tourism companies adopted the technology for the
development and expansion of the business (Fang et al., 2016).
IMPACT OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY ON
TOURISM INDUSTRY
Information and communication technology is the combination of components and
technology that help in improving communication and integrate telecommunication and
computers. The components of ICT are cloud computing, software, hardware, internet access
and data storage. All the components play an important role in the growth and development
of the business (Boes et al2015).
According to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) 2016, the travel and tourism
sector is a major foreign exchange earner and plays a vital role in the globalisation. The
sector is growing rapidly with the improvement in the services and by overcoming the factors
such as employment, environmental issues, social issues and economic issues of the country.
The sector adopted the information and communication technology for overcoming the
challenges and for improving the services within the industry as ICT provides information
and communication facilities that will help in the growth of the business. The positive impact
of information and communication technology on the tourism industries are as follows
(WTTC, 2016).
Services
Adaptation of the information and communication technology improved the services within
the tourism sector such as accommodation, travelling, entertainment and food & beverages.
The communication and technology enhanced the services as the customers can now easily
fetch the information about the tour company and can communicate with the company for
any query and issues. The technology also improved the speed of services like transportation,
food services and entertainment. The adaptation of the technology and communication
expanded the business in the tourism sector and also contributed in attracting the customers
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towards tourism that is one of the positive impacts of technology on tourism (Byrd et al.,
2016).
Market Shares
Use of information and communication technology helps the tourism industry in increasing
the market shares. The tourism industry adopted new technology for the enhancement of the
business by adopting new software and services. The improvement in the business of the
tourism sector increased the market share that brings a revolution in the tourism sector and
also enhanced the competition among the other companies. The increased market shares
forced the other tourism companies to adopt the information and communication technology
that brings a revolution in the tourism sector as the increment in the market shares improves
the economy of the sector (Byrd et al., 2016).
Labour Cost
Adaptation of information and communication technology enhanced the quality of services
and thus reduced the labour cost. The use of new technology and services helps the tourism
sector in providing better services to the tourist and to the people of the country. New
technology reduces the work pressure of the labour that leads to improving the performance
of the employee within the company. The adaptation of new technology also reduced the
labour cost as the sector no need to hire much of the employees for working since all the
work is managed by the new technology and communication methods. The reduced cost in
labour inspired the other tourism companies to adopt information and communication
technology (Byrd et al., 2016).
Customer Satisfaction
The success and growth of the company totally depend on the satisfaction of the customers
with the services of the company. Every organisation needs to look after the comfort zone
and demands of the customer as the customer is the only way to achieve success. For the
satisfaction of the customer, the tourism sector adopted the technology of information and
communication that played a vital role in bringing revolution in the industry. The information
and technology helped the tourism sector in satisfying the customer by providing excellent
communication services now the customers can easily interact with the company for any
quarry and suggestion. The personal data of the customer is now more secured with the help
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of technology that enhanced customer satisfaction and also forced other tourism companies to
adopt the technology (Byrd et al., 2016).
The adaptation of the information and technology become necessary for the tourism sector as
helps in making the operations easy and also improves the services. Also, the use of
technology will help the tourism sector in being tuned with new invention and innovation that
will help in satisfying the customer and also in improving the service quality. The technology
also helped the tourism sector in business expansion by attracting the customers through
advertisement and social media and also helps the industry in properly securing the data of
the company as well as of the customer which is necessary to maintain the trust and faith in
the customer's mind. The adaptation of the information and communication technology
increased the competition among the different companies within the industry. The ICT
contributed to bringing the revolution to make the tourism industry digital (Schwalbe, 2015).
ROLE OF ICT IN SHAPING THE COMPETITIVENESS OF THE TOURISM
INDUSTRY
Competition can be defined as the activity in which two or more firms participate in order to
gain success and a better reputation within the industry. The competition also helps the
company in improving the quality of goods and services for being in competition. The
companies adopt many techniques and methods to win the competition and to maintain their
position in the industry. The economy of the tourism industry is the fastest growing economy
in the world and has very high competition. The travel and tourism industry adopted the ICT
that played a major role in shaping the competition in the industry. The adaptation of the
information and communication technology not only increased the competition in the
companies but also in between the suppliers, travel agents and government bodies (Koo et al.,
2015).
Internet
The internet played an important role in increasing competition within the industry. Most of
the companies in the tourism industry use the internet for attracting the customer and for
making the customers aware of the services the company is providing. The other companies
in the industry also adopted the use of the internet for the promotion of the companies and by
attracting the customer with more discounts and offers. The company also provided websites
and mobile applications to the customer that played an important role in satisfyi9ng the
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customers. Now the customer can easily access any information about the tourism company
from any location and also inquire about the services whenever they7 need. The adaptation of
the internet by the firms in the tourism industry forced other companies to adopt information
and communication technology for being in competition. Also, the internet is the widest
technology used in every corner of the world and so is the best way to make the customers
aware of the services of the tourism companies. The internet provided a benefit to the travel
agents and government bodies and the other sectors that are directly or indirectly connected
with the tourism sector. The increased use of internet improved the business of tourism
operators and tourism agents as they get more tourists for service also enhanced the
competition among the agents for more earning (Koo et al., 2015).
Data
Protection of the data is necessary for every organisation for maintaining the security and
reputation of the company in the industry. There are many technologies used by the
companies in the tourism sector for securing the information of the company and customers.
Most of the companies used cloud computing for the storage and security of data as cloud
computing helps in storing the data safely for a long time which is necessary for the business
purpose and for protecting the company from any kind of fraud. Customer satisfaction is
increased due to the adaptation of cloud computing. The attraction of the customer towards
data protecting forced the other companies within the industry to adopt the digital technology
that will help in protecting the data of the customer and company (Koo et al., 2015).
APPLICATIONS OF ICT THAT ENHANCED THE COMPETITION WITHIN
TOURISM SECTOR
There are many applications that are used by the tourism industry for the growth of the
business and for being in the competition. The applications will help the companies in
providing better services to the tourist and also help in maintaining the competition among
the competitors. The applications of ICT that are used by the companies for shaping the
competition within the industry are as follows (Boes et al., 2015).
Harmonise Project
The Harmonise project is funded by the EU's IST research programme that will help in
setting the tourism Harmonisation network. The THN helps the public and private sector
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tourist authorities to use the information and technology tools to build more coordination. For
example, a holiday package may involve flight booking, accommodation, entertainment and
other activities. Harmonise project will help the tourism companies in adopting the IT tools
for dynamic packaging. The dynamic packaging is a process used by the customers that will
help them in building their own holiday package of flights, accommodations and
entertainment. The dynamic packaging is one of the important parts of the tourism sector and
thus many of the companies such as Gulliver Ireland Company is trying to adopt the dynamic
packaging on the website platform as it is extremely important for the future competition in
the tourism sector (Gërguri‐Rashiti et al., 2017).
Destination Management System
A destination management system is a tool used for providing communication between
destinations. The tool also plays an important role in providing communication between the
business processes such as stakeholders, consumers, service providers, distributors and
DMO's. The destination Management system tool allows the DMO’s and SME’s in
readdressing the structure of the distribution channel, to improve their returns and
investments. The adaptation of the tool increases the competition among other DMO's in
regards with the destination, products and service that differentiate them from other and thus
attracts the customer that will help in the business expansion (Becker and Gaivoronski,
2018).
Daedalus Project
The Daedalus project is aimed to provide e-marketing in the tourism sector in which the
information about the services and offers are provided to the tourist from where the tourist
can select and book the trip. The Daedalus portal helps the tourist in finding the best deals
along with best offers in the connected to the suppliers such as hotels, product manufacturer
and airlines. The project overcomes the issues of Destination Management System as it uses
the cultural dimension as the primary key for the customers. The Daedalus project follows the
structure of the DMS that helps in collecting information that attracts the tourist and the
services that became available for the tourist on the website every time. The Daedalus project
provides a platform to the customer through whom the customer can access any information
about the tour and services keeping culture as a priority. The priority of the customers on the
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basis of cultural dimension increases the competition among the other companies within the
industry (Maráková and Medved’ová, 016).
Destination Finder
Destination finder is another important application of information and communication
technology. The destination finder application will help in searching and collecting the
information of a large number of websites of European destination marketing organisation
make the information available for the user in a simple and preferred interface. The main aim
of the application is making the web more usable for the tourist and by helping them in
finding relevant destination information and in making a decision about the travel plan. The
destination finder works as a search engine for the tourist that will help in finding the
destination information with the use of keywords as the search engine provides the
information which has more number of counts in the search list. Being the top on the search
list will enhance the chances of getting attraction and popularity. The Destination finder will
help the companies in gaining popularity by being on the top of the search and that can only
be achieved by improving the services and facilities of the company thus increases the
competition within the tourism industry (Becker and Gaivoronski, 2018).
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CONCLUSION
As technology is improving the competition among the tourism industry is also increasing.
The tourism industry is adopting the information and communication technology for
improving the services and enhancement of the business. The ICT is the combination of
components and technology that will help the companies in improving the services and in
overcoming the challenges faced by the industry such as social issues, environmental issues,
political issues and economic issues. The adaptation of ICT not only helps in resolving the
issues but also helps in gaining profit and popularity in the industry. There are many tools
and application of ICT that are adopted by the tourism industry for gaining business profit
and competition that is important for the growth and progress of the business.
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