Airline Panel – Will the Good Times Continue?

Panelists will discuss the many opportunities and challenges facing EMEA airlines.

• The divide between legacy carriers and LCCs continues to grow, who will win?
• How are your airlines driving the customer experience?
• What are the biggest opportunities and challenges airlines are facing today?
• Is the industry going to face further consolidation?   Are there going to be more airlines going out of business?

Opening Keynote – The State of the Industry

The industry is going through a tremendously successful economic time, will that continue?  What will the industry look like in the near future?

Passenger travel is reaching historic high levels, customers are expecting more than ever.  How will the industry respond?

Industry trends and forecasts will be discussed.

NDC – The Reality

NDC is said to be transforming the industry, but is it? Is critical mass going to be achieved?  How will airlines respond? And with NDC becoming the new normal for carriers, how can airlines better inform the buyers and how has it reshaped the way airlines sell?

Will ATPCO’s Next Generation Storefront initiative change the future of NDC?

Keynote Address – State of the Industry, AFPs in the Airline Industry

Grégoire Toussaint, Director, EDC will review the latest study, conducted with UATP, on AFPs in the industry.

Customer Experience

Airlines know that the customer experience is an important part of travel. The way business is done has changed, from looking to booking to payment to the journey itself.  Are airlines meeting expectations?  Will AI and bots make positive impacts?  And what ways can they enhance communication with the traveler?  What is the next wave of innovation?

Payments

It has been known for years that the cost of accepting payments has surpassed even GDS fees, and the industry has been addressing it. There are now payment strategies, AFPs are becoming the norm and airlines must accept what form of payment the customer wants to pay in.  Is another wave about to begin, will GAFA (Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple), also known as the Gang of Four or Big Tech, bring about further change for payments in the airline industry?

The panel will discuss the changes happening within the payments ecosystem and what the future holds.

LCCs have been a dominant force in the industry, especially within Europe, for years.   LCCs continue to grow throughout Asia-Pacific and LATAM.  How will the industry look in the future – will it be a mix or legacy, hybrids, LCCs and ULCCs, or will there be a fundamental shift towards one?  How is the customer affecting this?

Digital Transformation

Digital technology is dramatically changing the industry.   Airlines now have digital departments, new roles created specifically for the onslaught of disruption that new technologies are bringing to a historically “old” industry.  Who is going to harness the technology best?  Will the industry change or will it be another topic that is discussed for years with no real transformation?  AI, machine learning, data, cybersecurity, mobile first – these are all items that the industry must look at to keep at pace with the rest of global economies.

The panel will discuss the current state of the industry and what innovations the future holds.

Revenue Management, Ancillary Revenue – Defining the Distribution Model

Revenue management distribution models are fundamental to running an airline.   There is increasing pressure through competition, very large costs to manage and ancillary models to manage.  Creating the right strategy and implementing it, is crucial to an airlines’ success.

The panel will look at distribution models, direct bookings, ancillary revenues, revenue management, data and what the next wave of distribution looks like.

What Does Regulation Mean for the Industry?

Regulation has become a hot topic for the industry, affecting payments with PSD2, SCA, the entire industry with GDPR and others. The panel will discuss how the regulations have affected the industry to date and what the future may hold.