345 Seventh Avenue 

Suite 1801 

New York , NY 10001 

Docket Operations 

U.S. Department ofTranspmiation 

1200 New Jersey Ave., S.E. 

Washington, D.C. 20590 

Submitted via www.regulations.gov 

April30, 2013 

Re: Agreement Adopted by the Passenger Services Conference of the 

International Air Transport Association; Docket DOT -OST -2013-0048 

The United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA) 1 urges the Depmiment to consider 

carefully the Application filed in the above-captioned docket by the lntemational Air Transpmi 

Association (lATA) for approval ofResolution 787, Enhanced Airline Distribution. 

Resolution 787 establishes a framework for airlines to develop a new electronic data interchange 

standard, with the objective of enabling "more agile pricing and more personalized offerings." 

Resolution at § 1.1. Under this new standard, traveler requests would be sent from third pmiy 

channels(~, tour operators) to airline dynamic shopping engines, with airlines determining 

"what product offer to retum in the response based on attributes that have been sent in the 

request." Id. Once implemented, the standard would allow all airline product offers to "be 

available for distribution through all channels that an airline wishes to sell them through." I d. 2 

USTOA takes no position on whether the Depmiment ought to approve or disapprove the 

Application as presented, require additional evidentiary filings from lATA in suppmi of the 

Application, or impose conditions on any approval. USTOA does, however, respectfully submit 

that the new standard represents a change to the airline inventory distribution landscape and, as a 

consequence, raises impmiant issues that merit consideration. 

To be clear, USTOA believes that airlines should be free to determine the distribution channels 

through which to market their products and service offerings and afforded the same operational 

flexibility enjoyed by most other sectors of the economy.

3 However, lATA has not requested 

that the Resolution be exempted from the U.S. antitrust laws under 49 U.S.C. § 41308 and, as a 

consequence, the Depmiment must proceed with great care to ensure the new standard will not 

1 USTOA's members currently comprise 196 major travel brands and each year serve more than six million 

travelers and sell more than $ 11 billion in tour products. 

Importantly, the new standards "shall enable any third party (approved) channel to access aiTline content directly 

fi·om the carrier." Resolution at§ 1.2.3. USTOA understands that separate Department approval would be 

required for any future reso lutions regarding standardized implementation. As IA T A itse lf recogni zes in the 

Application, "any additional conference agreements on standardi zation of distribution practices would need to be 

filed with DOT before becoming effective." Application at 2. 

As the Department has explained, "[W]e have consistently read the pro-competitive policy directives in 49 U.S.C. 

40 I 0 I as a llowing each airline the same freedom to choose the channe ls and the terms for distributing its services 

that firms in other unregulated industries enjoy. " Order 99-4-19 at 5. 

te l. 212-599-6599, fax. 212-599-6744, information@ustoa .com www.USTOA.com 
345 Seventh Avenue 

Suite 1801 

Docket DOT-OST-2013-0048 

Page 2 of2 

New York, NY 10001 4 substantially reduce or eliminate competition. Indeed, the Department has previously noted its 

concern "about the implications for competition and consumer welfare of a number of 

developments in airline marketing and distribution practices," in the context of evolving 

distribution technologies. Order 2000-10-8 at n3. Competitive and consumer welfare 

considerations should be assigned appropriate weight in this proceeding as well. 

In particular, the Depmiment should examine whether consumers will be able to obtain price 

quotes anonymously were the new distribution standards ultimately implemented-as is the case 

today on the Web sites of airlines as well as their travel agency/tour operator distribution 

pminers. Consumers currently visiting such Web sites generally need only provide very limited 

information, including desired travel dates, city-pair, number of passengers, and trip type (~, 

round-trip or one way), with or without additional basic details such as non-stop preference, to 

obtain immediate (and anonymous) price quotes. 

Under the Resolution, however, airlines will decide what offers to display based on traveler 

"attributes" included in shopping requests. Indeed, as set f01ih in the Business Process 

Description of the Resolution, the authentication and shopping process might include, as pmi of 

the initial request, data such as the purpose of the trip(~, leisure or business), travel history, 

shopping history and previously purchased services. Resolution at § 3 .1.1.1. On the other hand, 

the Application explains that "anonymous shopping requests will be supported in the new data 

standard, and the cunent EDIFACT system will be maintained in parallel." Application at 14. 

US TOA hopes that any Depmimental approval of the Application will be based on a finding that 

the new standard will not inhibit or otherwise curtail the ability to anonymously request airline 

price quotes. Although USTOA believes that airlines should be permitted to provide customized 

products and service offerings to consumers who voluntarily provide personal information, 

mandating all consumers to provide personal information simply to obtain an initial price quote 

would be unnecessary to accomplish the stated objectives ofthe Resolution. 

A new distribution standard based on extensible markup language has the potential to benefit 

airline distribution partners as well as consumers. However, the Department, in acting on the 

Application, must be guided by 49 U.S.C. § 41309, which directs the Secretary to determine 

whether an agreement is adverse to the public interest. USTOA trusts that the Depmiment, in 

rendering this determination, will give due consideration to the evidence presented by IA T A in 

supp01i of its Application as well as the extensive public comments submitted in the abovecaptioned docket, and will carefully evaluate of any legitimate competitive and privacy issues 

raised in this proceeding. 

Respectfully submitted, 

~ d--:~~~ Teny Dale 

President 

4 See Application at I ("Antitrust immunity is neither requested nor necessary for the Resolution.") 

tel. 212-599-6599, fax. 212-599-6744, information@ustoa.com www. USTOA.com 
United States Tour Operators Association 

345 Seventh Avenue 

Suite 1801 

New York, NY 10001 

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE 

I hereby cettify that I caused a copy of the foregoing letter to be served by first class or priority 

mail, this the 30th day of April, 2013, on each of the following persons: 

Chief, Transpmtation, Energy & 

Agriculture Section 

Antitrust Division 

U.S. Depmtment of Justice 

Washington, DC 20530 

David Radcliffe 

Chief Executive Officer 

Hogg Robinson Group 

16 E. 34111 Street, 3 rei Floor 

New York, NY 10016 

Paul Ruden 

Senior Vice President of Legal 

& Industry Affairs 

American Society of Travel Agents 

1101 King Street, Suite 200 

Alexandria, VA 22314 

Eric Bock 

Executive VP, Chief Legal Officer 

& Chief Administrative Officer 

Travelpmt 

300 Galleria Parkway 

Atlanta, GA 30339 

Scott Gutz 

President and Chief Executive Officer 

Amadeus North America, Inc. 

3470 NW 8211 d Avenue, Suite 1000 

Miami, FL 33122 

Dara Khosrowshahi 

President/CEO 

Expedia, Inc. 

333 108111 Avenue, NE 

Bellevue, W A 98004 

Pat Funk 

Executive Director 

Association of Retail Travel Agents 

4320 North Miller Road 

Scottsdale, AZ 85251-3606 

Grey Webb 

President 

Sabre Travel Network 

3150 Sabre Drive 

Southlake, TX 79092 

Barney Harford 

Chief Executive Officer 

Orbitz Worldwide Inc. 

500 W. Madison Street, Suite 1000 

Chicago, IL 60661 

Robert L. Darbelnet 

CEO/President 

AAA Travel (AAA Inc.) 

1000 AAA Drive 

Heathrow, FL 32746 

Douglas Anderson 

President/CEO 

Carlson Wagonlit Travel 

701 Carlson Parkway 

Minneapolis, MN 55305 

Douglas Lavin 

Regional Vice President- North An1erica 

International Air Transport Assoc. 

1201 F Street, NW, Suite 650 

Washington, DC 20004 

tel. 212-599-6599, fax. 212-599-6744, information@ustoa.com www.USTOA.com 
United 

~USTOA States Tour Operators Association 

345 Seventh Avenue 

Suite 1801 

New Yo ~. NY 1f QDL M1chae J. Premo 

President & CEO 

Airlines Reporting Corporation 

3000 Wilson Boulevard 

Suite 300 

Arlington, VA 22201-3862 

Jeffery H. Boyd 

President/CEO 

Priceline.com 

800 Connecticut A venue 

Norwalk, CT 06854 

J oop Drechsel 

Chief Executive Officer 

BCD Travel 

6 Concourse Parkway, Suite 2400 

Atlanta, GA 30328 

Sam Jain 

CEO/Chairman 

Travelong Inc. 

212 W. 35111 Street, Suite 1302 

New York, NY 10001 

Be1t W. Rein 

Bruce L. McDonald 

Counsel to IA T A 

Wiley Rein LLP 

1776 K Street, NW 

Washington, DC 20006 

Michael Batt 

Chairman/Founder 

Travel Leaders Group 

3033 Campus Drive, Suite W320 

Plymouth, MN 55441 

No1man Knowles 

Group VP 

Loyalty Travel Agency 

6442 City West Parkway 

Eden Prairie, MN 55344 

Dean Smith 

President 

FCUSA 

69 Spring Street 

Ramsey, NJ 07446 

William H. Tech 

CEO/President 

Travel and Transpmt Inc. 

2120 S. 7211d Street 

Omaha, NE 68124 

Peter Liney 

Chief Executive Officer 

STA Travel 

750 State Highway 121 , Suite 250 

Louisville, TX 75067 

Gloria Rohan 

CEO/President 

Omega World Travel 

31 00 Omega Office Park 

Fairfax, VA 22031 

Bryan Leibman 

President/CEO 

FROSCH 

1 Greenway Plaza, Suite 800 

Houston, TX 77046 

Priscilla Alexander 

President 

Protravel International Inc. 

515 Madison A venue 

New York, NY 10022 

Brad Tolkin 

Co-Chairman/CEO 

JeffTolkin 

Co-Chairman/CEO 

World Travel Holdings 

100 Fordham Road 

Wilmington, MA 01887 

tel. 212-599-6599, fax. 212 -599-6744, information@ustoa.com www.USTOA.com 
345 Seventh Avenue 

Suite 1801 

New Y.ork , NY 1DOOJ . ll James E. We s 

Chief Executive Officer 

World Travel Inc. 

1724 West Schuylkill Road 

Douglassville, PA 19518 

Tammy Krings 

CEO/Leadership Coach 

TS24 

7775 Walton Parkway 

New Albany, OH 43054 

Paul Metselaar 

Chairman/CEO 

Ovation Travel Group 

71 Fifth Avenue 

New York, NY 10003 

Jeff Smith 

President 

Travizon Inc. 

275 Mishawum Road, Suite 300 

Woburn, MA 01801 

Patrick Fragale 

President/COO 

Directravel 

860 Wyckoff A venue 

Mahwah, NJ 07430 

Andrea Fischer Newman 

Sr. Vice President, Government Affairs 

Alexander Van der Bell en 

Managing Director, Government Affairs 

& Associate General Counsel 

Christopher Walker 

Regional Director, Governn1ent Affairs 

Delta Air Lines, Inc. 

1212 New York Avenue, NW 

Washington, DC 20005 

Chris Phillips 

Managing Director - Distribution Strategy 

Delta Air Lines, Inc. 

1030 Delta Boulevard 

Atlanta, GA 30320 

Y oshimori Himeno 

President 

JTB 

19700 Mariner Avenue 

Torrance, CA 90503 

Lisa Durocher 

SVP/General Manager 

American Express 

World Financial Center 

200 Vesey Street 

New York, NY 10285 

Jonathan Perkel 

Senior VP, General Counsel 

Travelocity 

3150 Sabre Drive 

Southlake, TX 76092 

Maribeth L. Minella 

Sr. Vice President & Corporate Counsel 

World Travel, Inc. 

620 Pennsylvania Drive 

Exton, P A 19341 

William Beck 

Alaska Travel Source 

1236 E 72nd Ave 

Anchorage, AK 99518 

Patricia Higginbotham 

Global Business Travel Association 

123 North Pitt Street 

Alexandria, VA 22314 

W. David LeCompte 

CEO 

Short's Travel Management, Inc. 

1203 W. Ridgeway Ave. 

Waterloo, Iowa 50701 

David Kelly 

Executive Director 

Open Allies for Airfare Transparency 

439 New Jersey Ave., SE 

Washington, DC 20003 

te l. 212-599-6599, fax. 212-599-6744, information@us toa.com www. USTOA.com 
345 Seventh Avenue 

Suite 1801 

New York, ['JY 10001 

Kevm Mitchell 

Chairman 

Business Travel Coalition, Inc. 

214 Grouse Lane, Suite 210 

Radnor, PA 19087 

Alexandre Chemla 

President 

Altour Intemational Inc. 

1270 A venue of the Americas, 15111 Floor 

New York, NY 10020 

Alex de Gunten 

Executive Director 

Latin American and Caribbean Air 

Transpmi Association 

6355 NW 36 Street, Suite 601 

Miami, FL 3 3166 

Robin Reck 

Director of Communications 

Travel Tech: The Travel Technology Assoc. 

1250 Connecticut Ave., NW 

Suite 825 

Washington, DC 20036 

Hans Ollongren 

Senior Vice President 

Scandinavian Airlines Systems 

19587 

Stockholm-Arlanda 

Kabinvagen 5 

SWEDEN 

Dr. Elijah Chingosho 

Secretary General 

African Airlines Association 

211d Floor, AFRAA Bldg., Red Cross Rd. 

South C, OffMombasa Road, Nairobi 

P.O. Box 20116 

Nairobi, KENYA 

Mohamed Bhanj i 

VIA Rail Canada 

3 Place Ville Marie 

Montreal, H3B 2C9 

CANADA 

Amold Cheng 

General Manager, Intemational Affairs 

Cathay Pacific 

9/F, Central Tower 

Cathay Pacific City, 8 Scenic Road 

Hong Kong International Airpmi 

Lantau, HONG KONG 

Chris Zweigenthal 

Chief Executive 

Airlines Association of Southern Africa 

P.O. Box 7049 

Bonaero Park, 1622 

SOUTH AFRICA 

Beatrice Lim 

Director, Industry & Regulatory Affairs 

Association of Asia Pacific Airlines 

Unit 27-1 , Level 27, Menm·a Prestige 

1 J alan Pi nang 

50450 Kuala Lumpur 

MALAYSIA 

Samuel Podberesky 

Assistant General Counsel for 

Aviation Enforcement & Proceedings 

U.S. Depmiment of Transpmiation 

1200 New Jersey Ave., SE 

Room W96-322 (C-70) 

Washington, DC 20590 

Paul Gretch 

Director, Office of International Aviation 

U.S. Department ofTranspmiation 

1200 New Jersey Ave., SE 

Washington, DC 20590 

gy Murphy 

tel. 212 -599-6599, fax. 212-599-6744, information@ustoa.com www.USTOA.com