Media Release
Does the World’s largest Online Travel Company sell AIR or only Air Asia? Has selling flights gotten too hard?
1st April 2011
With today‟s announcement of the Asian joint venture between Expedia and Air Asia, with exclusive access to Air Asia content, one has to wonder if Expedia will now only sell Air Asia? And where does that leave the other airlines that consumers want to purchase? Will those airlines want to provide their best content to a website that has an obvious preference to one carrier?
In comparison, Webjet is not only selling Air Asia throughout Asia Pacific- but we are completely agnostic when it comes to providing consumers the broadest and most robust range of travel options in all of our geographic locations.
Commenting on today‟s announcement, John Guscic, Webjet‟s Managing Director states “And if the announcement regarding Expedia‟s plan in Asia wasn‟t confusing enough, in Australia and New Zealand, Expedia appears to be pulling out of the sale of air tickets to sell pastrami sandwiches in New York. Maybe bagels will follow?”
Recent ads launched by Expedia take great pains to point out that they do not charge a “booking fee” and as a result, it is implied that the traveler will have an extra $50 to spend on their travel experiences (like buying a pastrami sandwich). But Expedia are not enthusiastic sellers of air in this part of the world. Guscic comments “It appears that they have missed the fact that customers are not interested in only one aspect of the booking process but rather the total experience and the total price. And in both instances, Webjet delivers that value.”
To illustrate: If a traveler compares the cheapest price on Webjet to the cheapest price on Expedia for a family of four from Melbourne to the Gold Coast, Webjet‟s total cost- inclusive of all fees and taxes - is cheaper by more than $100. And as the only Online Travel Agency in Australia with all 5 of the major domestic carriers available for sale, we deliver the choice for customers in a way that no one else can.
“This unbiased presentation of flights, with outstanding choice and value, obviously resonates with consumers because they have repeatedly “voted” for us with their clicks, and for the 3rd year running we have been named Hitwise „s #1 Travel Agency in Australia” states Guscic.
Given our success in the travel business, we will not be looking to sell pastrami, bagels, or any other food dish from New York anytime soon.