Virgin Atlantic signs new IT services agreement with EDS
Published:03-December-2008
By CBR staff writer
EDS to offer airline reservations application and reservation services to the airlines
According to EDS, new features included in the application are electronic miscellaneous documents (EMD), which allow Virgin Atlantic employees to electronically capture and account for ancillary sales, and ticket re-issue and refund (TRR) software that automates a formerly labor-intensive function and improves customer service.
Also new to the agreement, EDS will use its airline service-oriented architecture (AirlineSOA) that connects software and systems to integrate Virgin Atlantic's operations and help meet the airline's market needs. Each of these new functionalities are expected to help Virgin Atlantic lower core reservations services costs and add new revenue opportunities.
EDS is expected to continue to provide passenger-processing services that include applications development and hosting of EDS Reservation Services, which handles approximately six million revenue passengers boarded annually for Virgin Atlantic.
Mike Cope, IT director of Virgin Atlantic, said: "We are impressed with EDS' vision for their new reservations platform and how this will enable Virgin Atlantic to exploit a service-oriented architecture (SOA) to provide improved customer services, greater agility and lower costs. This builds on our long-standing partnership with EDS during which time Virgin Atlantic has grown to become Britain's second-largest airline serving the world's major cities."
