Advanced Mobile Solutions to Empower Business Travelers Now Available from Amadeus
Written by Amadeus
Wednesday, 01 July 2009
New Capabilities via Mobile Devices Include Traveler Tracking for
Safety and Security, Access to Itinerary-based Location Information and
Efficient Corporate Trip Approval
MIAMI---Amadeus, a leading global technology and distribution partner to the travel industry, today announced a new suite of three mobile solutions for corporate travel managers and the business travelers that depend on them:
* Amadeus SMS Traveller Contact
* Amadeus Mobile Travel Assistant with conTgo
* Amadeus Mobile Partner
"Safety, productivity and information are all `must-haves' for any Road Warrior who frequently travels on business," said Vic Pynn, Executive Vice President and head of the corporate travel group for Amadeus in the Americas region. "With these new solutions -- combined with the know-how of corporate travel managers and the proliferation of mobile devices -- we can increase the quality of all three, resulting in a better business travel experience all around."
The new tools, available this summer, enable the delivery of important location and itinerary-based information to travelers as well as allow travel managers to remotely track personnel abroad for improved security and approve requested trips via their mobile device. The new functionality works across all major mobile operating systems for business, including Windows Mobile, Symbian and BlackBerry.
Amadeus SMS Traveller Contact
Amadeus SMS Traveller Contact is a tracking and security tool facilitating communication with traveling employees before, during and after their trip. It allows travel managers to contact travelers who may be at risk during an emergency via SMS and quickly send information via email to all those employees with planned trips for a given destination.
Mobile Travel Assistant with conTgo
Amadeus has teamed up with mobile technology company conTgo to offer an additional mobile solution to corporations. Mobile Travel Assistant's (MTA) main feature, known as the Follow-Me Itinerary, delivers relevant information directly to the traveler's mobile phone using SMS messages only when they need it. The information sent is based on the traveler's actual itinerary, and the content can be customized and controlled by the corporation based on location-specific rules. Secondly, the Travel Alert functionality on the MTA helps locate travelers by SMS and keeps track of their responses so that the travel manager can keep a clear view of those who may be in need of assistance during a travel security incident.
Amadeus Mobile Partner
Amadeus Mobile Partner allows travel managers to confirm or reject requested trips from their mobile device, improving department efficiency by eliminating bottlenecks. With Amadeus Mobile Partner, travel managers can see the full list of trips pending and approve or deny them.
Additionally, Amadeus Mobile Partner, synchronized with Amadeus e-Travel Management, puts all necessary travel information in the hands of managers and travelers for quick and convenient consultation during any journey. Travelers can store complete itineraries on their mobile device at the push of a button and can access everything from flight schedules and hotel addresses to car-rental and check-in information, even when they do not have network connectivity.
Albert Pozo, Vice President, Business & Corporate Travel, Amadeus, stated, "Even during these difficult financial times, Amadeus continues to invest in innovation and to believe in R&D, bringing our customers next generation travel technology that will help the traveler be more productive and efficient while on the road. After commissioning the Amadeus/ACTE study last year which evaluated the mobile needs of corporations, Amadeus is now delivering a portfolio of mobile services for the business traveler, helping corporations take care of their employees who are on the move."
With the launch of these mobile solutions, Amadeus demonstrates its continued investment in technology to increase the productivity of business travel. Earlier this year, Amadeus teamed up with Air France, IER and Nice Airport to pilot an industry first - a new mobile boarding pass using smart phones equipped with Near Field Communication technology. The project is currently being piloted at Nice Cote d'Azur Airport for travelers flying with Air France to Paris Orly. Additionally, Amadeus announced its involvement with BlackBerry's software development program to advance mobile travel technologies.
Note to the editors:
Amadeus is the chosen technology partner for providers, sellers, and buyers of travel. The company provides distribution, IT and point-of-sale solutions to help its customers adapt, grow and succeed in the fast changing travel industry. Customer groups include travel providers (airlines, hotels, car rental companies, railway companies, ferry lines, cruise lines, insurance companies and tour operators), travel sellers (travel agencies) and travel buyers (corporations and travellers). Solutions are grouped in four solution categories - Distribution & Content, Sales & e-Commerce, Business Management and Services & Consulting.
Solutions for corporations
Amadeus' vision is to provide next generation travel technology that encourages collaboration amongst all players within the travel industry. To realise this we are investing in technology that will allow the seamless integration of content, data and systems whether they are part of Amadeus or whether they are from third party suppliers. Over the coming years, Amadeus will expand its unique approach to Corporate Travel. By providing the technology solutions that span before, during and after all travel steps, the existing Online Booking tool is evolving beyond trip booking to provide the Total Trip Experience for Corporate Travellers. The move towards mobile technology is an integral part of the vision of what the travel experience should be.
Amadeus' corporate travel solution, Amadeus e-Travel Management, helps corporations manage their global travel programmes more efficiently and cost-effectively. The solution helps business travellers plan, personalise and purchase their trip while remaining compliant with the global travel policy. Over 2,500 corporations worldwide with more than one million active users utilise Amadeus e-Travel Management to integrate all the elements of their programmes into one intuitive and easy-to-administer solution. Customers include Altría, Cemex, Daimler, Ericsson, Huntsman, Nestlé, Total and Thales.
More information about Amadeus is available at: http://www.amadeus.com/corporations
Mobile Technology Feature - Top 10 Business Apps for Android - Android has become one of the most popular mobile operating systems
in the world due to advanced software, competitive manufacturers, and an
app market that is filled with exciting and useful applications. Read
on for this fine Top 10 List compiled by tech writer, Blake Sanders
The Really Big List of Mapping, Geo location Mobile developer resources, APIs and Tools - The Mobile Ecosystem... no question that mobile is huge and
the opportunity for developers, in particular, geo developers! There's
loads of developer resources on the web so to help the developer,
here's a listing of just some of the fine dev resources, blogs,
toolsets and more to consider when developing or porting your app to a
smartphone or Tablet.
ArcGIS.com Mashup Tutorial with Flickr and Foursquare data-
Here's a simple "how to" tutorial on working with the free ArcGIS.com
to easily import KML or RSS data from Flickr and foursquare into ArcGIS
to create your own custom map mashup. ArcGIS.com has some recent
updates including support for KML, be sure to check it out!
Most Users of Free Photo Apps Say Adding Cool Effects is Most Useful - Adding cool effects
to photos was rated as the most useful thing by more than halfof
consumers surveyed using free online photography services, according to
CatchFree a free
online service that helps people find the best free mobile and web applications
to perform useful tasks.
Amazon Kindle Fire Tablet Up Close - No Replacement for the iPad But Pretty Darned Sweet - As could be
expected, speculation and blogging is rampant with many stories and
pseudo "reviews" coming out, many of them touting the next "iPad
killer".
Mobile Developer Resource - MapQuest & The Mobile Worker - Facility management companies, surveyors, multi-level marketing,
insurance claims, pipeline companies, water utilities; all have field
workers who would benefit from mobile applications. Not only checking in
to work sites, but keeping a record of the work done
Flickr GPS Photo Tag Tip - Here's a tip for Flickr users who want to share their GPS information
with their photos. note, in order to do this you'll need to be
capturing photos using a GPS-enabled or GPS-aware camera (see you're
smartphone hardware settings to ensure that GPS or location sharing is
turned "ON)".
Mobile data usage in Canada to triple between 2010 and 2012 - Some interesting, yet not terribly surprising, numbers on mobile
usage coming out of Canada. According to a report summarized on
Techvibes, mobile usage is soaring, in particular, the smartphone
segment
Social Location Directory
Do you have a location-aware application, social location service or other location-sensitive service that you'd like to share with us? Please browse this growing directory of Social location Services and feel free to leave a link to your favorite service! See the Directory HERE
Suggested Reading
The Underground Guide To The iPhone:
The iPhone is – if I may say so – one of the greatest mobile
revolutions of the past decade. More and more, mobile phones seem to
materialize out of our wildest dreams. Because of the tight integration
of third-party applications, you can do nearly everything with your
device — be it gaming, working, fooling around, and of course phoning.
Good Mobile Messaging: Executives and professional field forces spend an increasing amount of time on the road tending to business.
Mobile Apps - Native or Web?:
You probably have a plan to build a mobile app, but you've struggled
with the basic question - Should I build it using open web standards
such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, or should I build it as a native app
for the devices I want to target?
iBike Coach App- a new “Always On” feature always gathers data
Nike+ GPS App- for sports tracking, recording and sharing
Featured Events
Content & Apps for Automotive Europe 2012 (18-19 April, Germany)
will give you key insights on how in-vehicle connectivity is being
revolutionised as OEMs integrate dynamic content to stay relevant
throughout the vehicle life cycle.
Location Intelligence for Enterprise - Europe 2012, January 16-17, London Hear from Google, Jones Lang LaSalle, Tesco, Willis, Oracle,
ESRI, Microsoft, PBBI and many more as they debate the best strategies
for business models and integration.
Consumer Telematics Show 2012 (Jan 9, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, USA) is the most prestigious and
dynamic consumer telematics focused meeting for the automotive industry.
Held in Las Vegas on the eve of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES),
this year's senior-level speakers will include General Motors, Audi,
Toyota, Panasonic, Continental, Hughes Telematics, Gartner, KIA,
Mercedes-Benz and many more
Esri Dev Summit - The
Esri Developer Summit (DevSummit) brings together developers and GIS
professionals from all over the globe. March 26-29, 2012, Palm Springs,
CA
