The digitalisation of market relationships in the airline business: the impact and prospects of e-business

In today's hypercompetitive environment, new sources of product and process innovation are continually being sought to reinforce companies' competitive advantages. In the recent past, the digital revolution inspired new managerial applications to strengthen positions within market arenas. In the case of airlines, early web applications were in the form of asynchronous sites, where customers could get little more than the same information on timetables and fares provided by travel agents albeit in new formats. Later, carriers started selling tickets on the web to make use of the cheaper distribution channel than the standard computer reservation systems (CRSs). Today, Internet potentially permits carriers to LT,et significant economic and competitive benefits beyond those simply coming from e-commerce. A wider e-business perspective may assure a one-to-one relationship with target customers, with a consequential fine-tuning of a firm's system offer. At the same time, carriers may exploit the significant cost savings from their procurement processes. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.