THE Wrap is a round-up of news in the travel and technology industries, and updates on how businesses in these sectors are resetting as they prepare for post-pandemic travel.
Philippine Airlines makes shopping easier for international travellers with preferred currency option
Philippine Airlines is making it more convenient for travellers to pay in their preferred currency for ticket bookings and other services through utilising Amadeus technology.
According to the travel technology company, Philippine Airlines is the first carrier to deploy multi-currency pricing through Amadeus’ FX Box platform. This enables international passengers shopping on the airline’s website to have the option to pay for offers in their preferred currency.
“The service allows the airline to offer an improved customer experience while controlling the exchange rates used. This is different from many foreign exchange services available today which are managed by the payments chain directly,” said Amadeus.
With the FX Box platform, Philippine Airlines offers are repriced in the passenger’s currency based on direct access to competitive exchange rates, it added. The foreign exchange transaction is fully automated, and the airline receives payment in its currency of choice, eliminating back-office administration.
Bart Tompkins, Amadeus’ managing director, payments, said displaying the offer in the traveller’s currency improves the shopping experience and boosts conversion rates. “Imagine a US citizen who’s travelled to Japan and then needs to book a flight to the Philippines. It’s hard for that US traveller to compare the airline’s offer and make a decision when it’s priced in Japanese yen or Philippine pesos.”
Wilson H. Go, chief information officer at Philippine Airlines explained that working with Amadeus made it easier for its international guests to book flights in currencies they understand. “Making travel simpler and easier through digital innovations is a key priority for PAL as we prepare to add more flights and welcome an increased number of international travellers on our non-stop flights within Asia, to North America, UK, and the Middle East,” he added.
IATA supports EU Digital Covid Certificate
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has expressed its support for the EU Digital Covid Certificate (DCC), and is urging states to make it their global standard for digital vaccine certificates.
In announcing the backing for the certificate in a statement, IATA deputy director general Conrad Clifford said: “The DCC was delivered in record time to help facilitate the reopening of EU states to travel. In the absence of a single global standard for digital vaccine certificates, it should serve as a blueprint for other nations looking to implement digital vaccination certificates to help facilitate travel and its associated economic benefits.”
According to IATA, the EU DCC meets several key criteria that have been identified as important if a digital vaccination certificate is to be effective:
- The DCC has the flexibility to be used in both paper and digital format.
- The DCC QR code can be included in both digital and paper format. It contains essential information, as well as a digital signature to make sure the certificate is authentic.
- The European Commission has built a gateway through which the encrypted data used to sign DCCs and required to authenticate certificate signatures can be distributed across the EU. The gateway can be also used to distribute encrypted data of non-EU certificate issuers other issuers. The EU has also developed a specification for machine readable Validation Rules for cross-country travel.
The EU DCC is implemented in the 27 EU member states. A number of reciprocal agreements have also been agreed with other states’ own vaccination certificates, including Switzerland, Turkey and Ukraine.
IATA noted that in the absence of a single global standard for digital vaccination certificates up to 60 other countries are looking to use the DCC specification for their own certificate.
“The DCC is an excellent model as it is consistent with the latest World Health Organisation Guidance and is fully supported by IATA Travel Pass. Another benefit of the DCC is that it enables holders to access non-aviation sites in Europe that require proof of vaccination such as museums, sporting events and concerts,” the trade association added.
Adyen integrates with Shiji Group to provide simplified payment process for hotels
Dutch payments platform Adyen has partnered with multi-national technology company Shiji Group to streamline hospitality payments.
Adyen said its integration with Shiji Payments would simplify the payment process for hospitality businesses by removing the need for a list of platforms and suppliers which usually includes separate processes for property management systems, food and beverage point of sale and guest experience platforms. These are in addition to the different payments service providers for each.
It added that with just two companies, Adyen and Shiji, hotels can consolidate their front-end business systems and payment needs, including having the same point of sale setups across regions and easier reconciliation across all channels. “These integrated features power the seamless journey that customers expect nowadays.”
Commenting on the partnership Roelant Prins, chief commercial officer of Adyen, said: “Combining Adyen with Shiji’s range of solutions turns a traditionally complex business into a single customer experience. Working together means we can facilitate more advanced customer journeys for our joint hospitality customers and their guests.”
Munich-based hospitality brand Ruby Hotels is an early adopter of the combined proposition.
• Featured image credit: zenstock/Getty Images
