The United-Travelport agreement differs from traditional GDS-airline relationships, in which technology is built separately by each party and later integrated. Instead, United will provide Travelport with early access to its NDC technology road map so that the two companies can work in concert to develop new merchandising and servicing capabilities. The approach should speed the development process, Hickey said.
“We are building together; we are testing together; and we are launching at the same time,” he said. “We believe we can get innovative ideas earlier to market.”
United currently uses NDC within the GDSs to merchandise ancillary products and to present continuously priced and personalized fares that aren’t supported by legacy GDS technology.
Hollister said one early focus under the new Travelport collaboration will be to enhance United’s seat merchandising capabilities within Travelport Plus. The platform allows for the selection and sale of specific seat assignments, but it doesn’t support tools United uses on its direct channels, such as photos and detailed seat maps.
Another early focus will be to bring capabilities of the Deem OBT more in line with what United already can do on direct channels. Those so-called OBT extras will eventually include the ability for corporate travelers to pool unused United travel credits, directly enroll in the MileagePlus loyalty program and use United Jetstream amenity funds as a form of payment for ancillary products.
Speeding the servicing-enhancement process is another goal. Travel advisors are often reluctant to make NDC-enabled bookings because of concerns about servicing efficacy.
Hollister said United’s NDC enables automated assistance in cases of schedule changes and travel waivers, saving advisors time. But in other post-booking situations, servicing NDC bookings takes substantially longer than servicing traditional GDS bookings.
Through their new collaboration, United servicing enhancements could come to market earlier on Travelport platforms, Hickey said.
Transparency will be another benefit of the two companies developing technology together, he emphasized, because United merchandising enhancements should become available within Travelport at the same time that they are deployed in United direct channels.
“Travelers won’t have to be concerned that they can see something on United.com and not see it with their agent,” he said.
United and Travelport said capabilities from the collaboration will roll out in phases beginning early next year and continue throughout 2026.
The two partners aren’t alone in being bullish about their innovative new arrangement. Travel technology analyst Henry Harteveldt, founder of Atmosphere Research Group, said that as Travelport gains more familiarity with United’s NDC and other tech schemas, the GDS should be able to implement new United capabilities with increasing speed.
