2009-11-03

OTA Ticket Fee Cuts Boost Conversion Rates

OTA Ticket Fee Cuts Boost Conversion Rates November 4, 2009 In the past few years, U.S. travelers have increasingly begun to treat airline tickets as a commodity. Shoppers scour the Internet with the ultimate goal of finding the lowest price, often checking a myriad of Web sites including supplier sites, online travel agencies (OTAs), metasearch sites and deal sites. Airline Web sites had long benefited from the consistent flow of OTA shoppers who were put off by OTA booking fees. Facing the grueling market conditions of 2009, the big three online travel agencies decided to cut that flow off in March, when they eliminated most air booking fees. Beyond the initial financial impact of the OTA fee cuts, a new PhoCusWright study, conducted in partnership with Compete Inc., finds that the move has had a measurable impact on Web site conversion rates. Airline supplier Web sites have long dominated online...

This post was originally posted by phocuswright @ PhoCusWright's FYI.
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