NDC is holding back growth, say OTAs

The expansion of online travel agencies (OTAs) in Africa is being held back by airlines failing to deliver on their original promises when it comes to NDC.  

This was a topic highlighted during the Web in Travel (WiT) conference held in Cape Town on March 13. During a panel discussion, Andy Hedley, MD of Travelstart, said airlines had yet to fully leverage the potential of NDC. “Airlines have to figure out how to use NDC properly. While it has been customised by nearly every airline, it still doesn’t deliver on its original promise, which was personalisation to the customer. If properly utilised, it could benefit the entire travel value chain,” he said.  

For example, Hedley pointed that many travellers often took longer than 30 minutes to complete a booking, by which time their selected offer had expired, creating a frustrating experience that contributed to lost sales opportunities. 

Panellist Bayo Adedeji, Group CEO of Wakanow, agreed and said another point of…