Airlines versus sellers: Can we turn conflict into collaboration?

AeroTime columnist Ann Cederhall is an instructor with IATA on Airline Distribution Strategy and with Aeroclass on Airline Retailing, Ann is a frequent speaker and panelist at industry events. She has authored numerous highly regarded articles and white papers in the travel industry press. As one of the owners of the consulting firm LeapShift, Ann brings an extensive track record of delivering business value in project and product management roles worldwide.  

The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of AeroTime. 

At one point, the relationship between airlines and travel sellers was strong and mutually beneficial. Both sides clearly understood that they depended on each other.  

In my view, this balance began to shift in the early 2000s when airlines started scrutinizing their distribution costs. The first major change was the removal of agency commissions, which was followed by full-content agreements and eventually the introduction of NDC (New Distribution Capability) by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in 2012. Since then, the relationship seems to have deteriorated even further, with NDC accelerating a downward spiral. 

That said, I don’t believe NDC alone is to blame. The post-COVID landscape, combined with an influx of new people in the industry who may not fully appreciate these interdependencies, has contributed to the growing disconnect. On top of that is the perceived “threat” of Artificial Intelligence (AI). In my opinion, this risk is overstated. Few industries rely as much on a human touch as travel. While AI will undoubtedly reshape certain aspects of the business by automating routine tasks and improving efficiency, the human element in travel advising and selling remains as vital as ever. 

Several factors lie at the root of this problem. One is the incentives paid to agents by the GDS (Global Distribution Systems), which have long been a point of contention for airlines. Another is the industry’s reliance on PNR-centric systems. Both airlines and sellers have built their entire infrastructure around this format, which has been in place since the 1960s. 

GDS vs. NDC 

What often gets overlooked is the fundamental difference between a Global Distribution System (GDS) and a New Distribution Capability (NDC). A GDS is a platform that aggregates and distributes content from all the airlines it has contracted. NDC, by contrast, only provides the content that individual airlines choose to contract and distribute. The same is true for an airline’s hosting system (the passenger service system, or PSS), which makes available only the content it has agreed to sell. 

The barriers separating these systems are not technical but commercial. At its core, the trade-off is clear: a GDS is more expensive, but it also delivers greater global reach. 

But do the barriers benefit the end customer? In practice, the answer is no. Picture a traveler stranded at the airport and trying to rebook after a disruption. The last thing they want to hear is the airline telling them to “call your agent” or, worse, suggesting they should “book direct next time.” That experience does nothing to serve the customer and only deepens frustration. 

Trust issues 

This article is not intended to be purely about technology, it is about relationships, and how we can work to improve them. Yet fears around change remain significant. 

As airlines remove content from the GDS and shift it into NDC channels, agents are left searching for solutions. To me, it feels unusual to remove content entirely when pricing differentiation by channel could achieve a similar effect. Still, the airline is the owner of its content, not the seller. The result of this fragmentation, however, is clear: agency consolidation. Larger players with deeper pockets tend to survive, while smaller agencies struggle to keep pace. 

This raises difficult questions. Which technology aggregator should I choose? Should I partner with a consolidator instead? How can I manage increasingly fragmented content? Will I need to upgrade my accounting and selling systems? Ultimately, NDC seems to be accelerating the consolidation of agencies while driving the growth of consolidators. However, these are just another layer of intermediaries, each looking to take their own share of the pie. 

Another concern that sellers have about airlines can end up directly hurting the traveler. I often hear sellers say, “We enter our own email and phone number, so the airline doesn’t steal our customer.” I recently experienced this myself when an airline I was working with used a travel agency that created an “Ann Cederhall email” with their own address. This drove me crazy, as I needed my real email to access the booking in the airline’s app. 

And why is access to the app so important? Because that is where travelers receive critical updates about check-in, gate changes, departure delays, or rebookings. Forcing all this information to flow through a travel agent is not just inconvenient, it creates needless inefficiency for the traveler. 

Another outdated relic is the ADM (agency debit memos) that airlines issue for incorrect ticketing or perceived misbehavior. One of the stated goals of the NDC was to reduce the number of ADMs, yet this has not materialized. In fact, I often hear that agents struggle not only with the volume of ADMs but also with the complexity of contesting them and finding adequate support. Perhaps this is an area where specialist companies could step in to manage the process more effectively.  

The value of the seller 

What concerns me further is the attitude many airlines still seem to hold toward sellers. There is often a lack of understanding of what a seller truly provides. At its core, the value of a seller lies in expertise and in acting as a trusted advisor, a kind of concierge for the traveler. Airlines frequently overlook the duty of care sellers provide, as well as the vital relationship they build between the end customer and the advisor. 

The real question is this, how do we rebuild trust and refocus on the one stakeholder who truly matters – the customer? Every player in this ecosystem has a role, and all of us are needed. Which brings me back to the increasing mistrust.  

How can we overcome the fears that agents hold? One thing is certain: replacing customer contact details with agency emails should have no place in the reservation process. Perhaps it should even be mandatory for any system to capture the traveler’s actual contact details. I think this would be of security interest as well.  

So, is education the solution? A key challenge lies in the lack of understanding of each other’s business models and costs. How can we bring greater transparency and visibility to this? After all, when a customer chooses to book through both sellers and airlines, collaboration is essential.  

Who owns the customer?  

This leads us back to the familiar debate: “Who owns the customer?” In my view, the answer is simple: I own myself. If I travel on behalf of my employer, then both the company and I share that ownership. But one thing is absolutely clear: neither the airline nor the seller owns me.  

My hope is that initiatives like UK-based identity service OneID will lead to real progress, enabling a portable digital profile where travelers themselves choose what information to share and with whom. 

Another possible solution could be to have all tickets issued directly by the airline. In such a model, the airline would take on a larger operational role, leaving sellers to focus on what they do best: advising customers and selling content.  The post Airlines versus sellers: Can we turn conflict into collaboration? appeared first on AeroTime.

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