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Amadeus
has acquired a controlling interest in Onerail, which provides a suite of technology solutions to the rail industry. The acquisition is
a major milestone in Amadeus’ strategy to expand its range of technology solutions for its customers in the travel industry.
The acquisition allows Amadeus to offer core, next generation technology solutions to help rail companies they become more integrated
with air travel. The acquisition adds a fully-integrated inventory, pricing, reservation and distribution system, enabling domestic and
international distribution, alongside other forms of transport – such as air or car – to Amadeus’ suite of solutions for rail companies.
Increasingly, rail companies with long-distance and high-speed routes are building links with airlines, such as code share and interline
agreements. This enables trains to play a greater role in an integrated transport network by bringing passengers from
secondary towns to major hub airports. The high-speed rail network today carries about 400 million passengers and is expected to quadruple in size by 2020.
The solutions include a fully integrated reservation system which allows rail companies to sell tickets through travel agencies, direct on the
internet and from kiosks in trains. The system is more convenient for travellers and more efficient for the rail company. Amadeus can also
now offer sophisticated pricing and profiling solutions which allow rail companies to manage fares more efficiently and customers more
attentively.
The suite of solutions developed is already being used by train companies in Australia and the UK. The technology developed by
Onerail, and which will now be offered by Amadeus, has been instrumental in allowing Onerail’s clients to efficiently manage and grow their
reservations and offer a better, more flexible service to their customers.
On many business routes rail companies are in direct competition with full service airlines, low-cost carriers and, with rail liberalisation in
Europe, foreign rail companies running international routes. In this new, international and competitive environment, rail companies need a
technology infrastructure which gives them the flexibility to quickly take advantage of opportunities and circumvent threats.
“We believe that the next generation technology developed by Onerail combined with the world-class data processing and distribution
reach of Amadeus is an extremely compelling proposition for the industry,”
said Philippe Chérèque, Senior Vice President, Corporate
Strategy, Amadeus, “This allows us to offer massive value to rail companies and, by developing deeper relationships with these vital travel
providers, improve our offer to travel agencies and management companies too.”
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