Emirates offers NDC platform for travel agents
Emirates is going to offer travel trade partners bespoke products and services, including rich content and differentiated pricing, through its NDC-enabled direct connect platform -- Emirates Gateway -- starting from 01 July.
A surcharge on all bookings made via Global Distribution Systems (GDS) will also kick off on the same day, read a press release
NDC is New Distribution Capability which was created by IATA to improve the way the airline content is distributed.
Emirates' Chief Commercial Officer Adnan Kazim said, "We are pleased to introduce the next batch of new exclusive features and benefits for them on Emirates Gateway, which was launched to address the limitations of current legacy systems and provide a wide range of additional content and options for agents.
Agencies not signed up to the Emirates Gateway can continue to access Emirates' EDIFACT – legacy content through the airline's GDS partners Amadeus, Travelport, Travelsky, Infini and Sirena.
However, to mitigate the higher cost Emirates incurs through GDS distribution, from 01 July 2021, bookings made via GDS will incur a distribution surcharge ranging between $14 and 25 per ticket depending on sector length.
From 01 July 2021, NDC contents those will be available to agents, via Emirates Gateway: access to differentiated ticket pricing such as dedicated promotional fares and pre-sales; ability to sell excess baggage, enabling enhanced customer experience; access to rich content; differentiated pricing for select ancillary services; and faster access to new ancillary products.