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This paper seeks to analyze the extent to which New Zealand domestic and outbound travelers' book components of their trip in advance or at their destination and to explore the factors that influence this. Furthermore, the paper compares the distribution channels used by domestic and outbound travelers to purchase different travel products and to examine why these channels have been selected.

The study involves the collection and analysis of data on the profiles, trip characteristics and distribution behavior of domestic and outbound travelers based on a nationwide telephone survey of 1,000 respondents.

Little variation was found in the profile characteristics of domestic and outbound travelers but significant differences occurred in terms of the trip characteristics, the extent of booking in advance and at the destination, reasons why advance bookings were not made, how bookings were made and the channels used all exhibited significant differences according to domestic or outbound travel. This pattern was less consistent with regards to the factors influencing how the bookings were made and the factors affecting channel choice.

The findings illustrate the complexity of travel decision‐making issues, underline the need to take account of differences between domestic and outbound travel and across trip components, and to examine the factors that underlie distribution related behavior.

The value and originality of this paper lie in the systematic comparison of the booking and channel choice behavior of domestic and outbound travelers, the search for factors influencing this behavior and a sectoral approach that differentiates transport to and at the destination.

Many booking services in traditional people-processing service areas such as gastronomy were recently transformed into online reservation services. While advantages for platform providers (i.e. a share of the respective business) and merchants (i.e. increased operational efficiency) seem obvious, it is less known about how customers respond to these new forms of online services. This paper aims to illustrate how booking traditional people-processing services online is different from booking it via phone.

This study conceptualized a 2 × 2 experimental survey design by manipulating users’ booking channel (online vs low) and the service complexity of different, less digitized people-processing services (high: dentist vs low: restaurant). After conducting several pretests, the authors surveyed 282 respondents familiar with online booking and reservation.

The results show that the booking channel (online reservation vs phone reservation) affects associated perceived booking risk and negatively affects users’ intention to use the reservation service. Additionally, users’ attitudes toward online reservation moderate the influence of booking channel on perceived booking risk.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first research that investigates adoption of online reservation in people-processing services.

Hotel managers are being challenged by the increasing multitude of distribution and sales channels. Online travel agencies (OTAs) in particular generate a great deal of uncertainty: Which are the best ones? Which ones offer the best conditions? How many channels are optimal for my hotel? How can I evaluate costs versus benefits? These and other questions concerning the optimal online distribution channel strategy have produced different reactions in practice. The aim of this paper is to challenge the need for an over-optimization of channel strategy by proposing that the consumer, at the end, deals with a network of information presented on one networked environment, including the Web. Hence, the network effect of the numerous online platforms is what drives consumer choice and, finally, bookings.

A series of multiple regressions with representative samples of hotels in Switzerland from the years 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 was performed to estimate the importance of the number of platforms against other independent variables. Additionally, further multiple regressions with samples from the years 2011 and 2012 using the most important platforms (first-tier channels) shows again that the number of platforms is more important.

The analyses show that the estimated number of online bookings by the respondents in the hotels is a result of the number of channels, not the type of channel. This is particularly true for non-categorized establishments and one- and two-star hotels. The analyses do not confirm the billboard effect, according to which particular platforms (first-tier channels) increase the probability of bookings. Thus, the survival strategy is to maximize share of shelf and to build on interdependencies and network effects.

The study looks only at online bookings. Additional research into the connection between online and offline channels, particularly from the viewpoint of the consumer, will provide further insights. The study looks at the booking volume per channel, not the monetary sales volume or the profit. A study that quantifies not only the volume of bookings but also the total profit or the contribution to profit per channel could quantify the benefits of the multi-channel strategy.

The multiple online channel strategy seems to be the more effective approach to maximizing bookings online, regardless of the platforms chosen. Results of the study challenge the current opinion among practitioners that the multitude of distribution channels forces them to choose among single online channels and, therefore, drives the search for criteria to assess these channels or even to disregard them. The consistent results across 2009-2012 show that even in the turbulent phase of the advent of OTAs in the travel industry, hotels can adopt a winning strategy. Finally, the results suggest that the intermediation of online distribution of hotel beds has approached the condition of perfect competition, causing the OTA business model to be cannibalized.

Advances in information communication technologies (ICTs) have changed the tourism distribution channels model, as traditional players continue to disappear or change their business model, while new players and channels emerge because of technological developments. Therefore, this study aims to propose a tourism distribution channels model for European island destinations.

Using an exploratory approach, interviews with 34 tourism stakeholders were conducted at ITB Berlin and WTM London in March 2014 and March/November 2016, and analyzed using thematic analysis.

The findings revealed that a number of changes have taken place within the distribution channels market over the past six years. The disappearance of incoming travel agents has increased, while new forms of online communication and distribution have appeared. In particular, social media, online review sites and mobile channels play an increasingly important role for hoteliers.

ICTs change the online landscape for tourist distribution in island destinations, and practitioners should make use of new online channels and be aware of disappearing tourism players to remain competitive.

First, this paper provides indications for the increased disintermediation in regard to incoming travel agents within the Cretan hospitality and tourism industry. Second, it investigates the issue of tourism distribution channels using a broad range of key tourism and hospitality players to provide a tourism distribution channels model for future reference. Finally, this study offers implications for the development of distribution strategies for tourism businesses and hoteliers in Crete.

The purpose of this study is to provide new insights into the factors that influence cancellation behaviour with respect to hotel bookings. The data are based on individual bookings drawn from a hotel reservation system database comprising nine hotels.

The determinants of cancellation probability are estimated using a probit model with cluster adjusted standard errors at the hotel level. Separate estimates are provided for rooms booked offline, through online travel agencies and through traditional travel agencies.

Evidence based on 233,000 bookings shows that the overall cancellation rate is 8 per cent. Cancellation rates are highest for online bookings (17 per cent), followed by offline bookings (12 per cent) and travel agency bookings (4 per cent). Probit estimations show that the probability of cancelling a booking is significantly higher for early bookings, large groups that book offline, offline bookings during high seasons, bookings not involving children and bookings made by guests from specific countries (e.g. China and Russia). Among the factors, booking lead time and country of residence play the largest role, particularly for online bookings.

The analysis is based on individual-level booking data from one hotel chain in Finland, and therefore cannot be generalised for the total population of hotels in the country under observation.

The main contribution of this paper is a thorough investigation of the factors that influence cancellation behaviour at both the theoretical and empirical levels. Detailed and unique data from a hotel reservation system allow for new empirical insights into this behaviour.

The purpose of this paper is to reexamine several issues about disintermediation from the perspectives of tourism product/service suppliers (hotels) and traditional intermediaries (travel agencies), considering the move of the current distribution landscape toward disintermediation. Internet and mobile technologies offer various tools for consumers to search and purchase products/services from suppliers directly. Consequently, the necessity and role of traditional intermediaries in the industry become questionable.

In all, six focus group interviews were conducted to collect primary data from ten managers of three traditional travel agencies and 11 managers from three business hotels in Hong Kong, which is a major travel destination in Asia with many world-class hotels and tourism facilities.

Despite their different business backgrounds, the interviewees agreed on the increasing importance of Internet technology in the distribution of tourism products. The interviewees also posited that traditional travel agencies are still needed to serve certain customer groups, albeit their role may have little importance.

Practitioners should adapt to technologically induced changes to remain competitive in the e-business era.

This paper provides several original contributions. First, this paper supplements the extant literature by revealing how modern practitioners perceive disintermediation in the tourism and hospitality industry. Second, this paper is the first to investigate the disintermediation issue from the perspectives of tourism product/service suppliers and intermediaries. Finally, this paper provides a reference for industry practitioners to establish adequate strategies that take advantage of Internet technology.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the influence of booking website (hotel or third-party) characteristics and hotel star-rating classification, as signals of quality, on travelers’ relationships with hotels or hotel chains, taking into account the moderating effect of travelers’ tendencies to seek variety.

To test the hypothesized relationships, structural equation modeling was performed. A multi-group analysis was also conducted to test the moderating effect of travelers’ variety seeking.

Both booking website quality and star rating improve customer satisfaction with specific experiences at hotels and behavioral intentions toward hotels. The results also show that travelers’ variety-seeking levels (low/high) exert a moderating effect on their overall relationships with hotels, and quality signals are more relevant for those who are less inclined to seek variety in their travel experiences.

This paper analyzes the importance of quality signals on travelers’ relationships with hotels in an electronic shopping environment. Furthermore, the influence of travelers’ variety-seeking in the hotel sector in particular is studied. For hotel managers, a better knowledge of this personality trait can help to apply successful segmentation strategies.

Este estudio analiza la influencia de las características del sitio web de reserva -web propia del hotel o de un tercero- y del número de estrellas del hotel, como señales de calidad, en la relación del cliente con el hotel o cadena, teniendo en cuenta el efecto moderador de la tendencia del viajero a buscar variedad.

Para probar las hipótesis, se llevó a cabo un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales (SEM). También se realizó un análisis multi-grupo para probar el efecto moderador de la búsqueda de variedad del viajero.

Tanto la calidad del sitio web de reserva como las estrellas favorecen la satisfacción del cliente con la experiencia concreta en el hotel y, finalmente, las intenciones de comportamiento hacia el hotel. Además, el análisis muestra que el nivel de búsqueda de variedad del viajero (bajo/alto) ejerce un efecto moderador en su relación global con el hotel y que las señales parecen ser más relevantes para los individuos con menor tendencia a buscar variedad en sus experiencias de viaje.

Este trabajo analiza la importancia de las señales de calidad en la relación de los viajeros con los hoteles en un entorno de compra electrónica. Además, se estudia la influencia de la búsqueda de variedad de los viajeros en el sector hotelero en particular. Un mejor conocimiento de este rasgo de la personalidad puede ayudar a los gerentes de hotel a aplicar estrategias de segmentación exitosas.

摘要

本研究的目的是分析作为品质判断因素的预订网站(酒店或第三方)特征和酒店星级评分分类对游客与酒店或连锁酒店关系的影响，并考虑游客寻求多样性倾向的调节作用。

为了检验假设的关系，我们进行了结构方程建模。本研究还采用多组分析的方法来检验旅客的多样性寻求的调节作用。

预订网站的质量和星级评分都可以提高客户对酒店具体体验的满意度和对酒店的行为意向。结果还表明，游客的多样性寻求水平(低/高)对他们与酒店的整体关系具有调节作用，而质量因素对那些不太倾向于在旅行体验中寻求多样性的人更相关。

本文分析了在电子购物环境下，品质因素对游客与酒店关系的重要性。此外，本文还特别研究了游客的多样性寻求对酒店行业的影响。对于酒店管理者来说，更好地了解这一个性特征有助于成功地应用细分策略。

The rapid digital transformation (DX) that airlines experienced during the past decade has been proven to be the driving force of significant benefits for the airlines when it comes to cost reduction, branding and revenue opportunities when passengers purchase tickets and ancillaries directly from their websites. This paper aims to contribute empirically to the theoretical approaches of DX and revenue management (RM) with the investigation of the Aegean airlines DX progress, focusing on emerging RM practices and digital distribution channels.

A content analysis of the airlines’ website and social media performance is used to note the current situation combined with previous and upcoming developments. Evaluation of the company’s digitalization progress is approached by using a combination of two selected DX models, the digital transformation maturity (DTM) concept and the technology acceptance model (TAM).

The analysis of qualitative and quantitative secondary data provided by the Aegean airlines indicates that the adoption of a digital evolution marketing plan, enriched with emerging RM practices, is leading to the increase of the bookings coming from the airline’s direct distribution channels (Web & Apps) over those from intermediaries (GDSs). Consequently, Aegean airlines’ DX progress favors cost reduction and revenue increase at the same time.

DX model-based airline steps combined with direct versus indirect ticket purchase pattern compose a tool to evaluate the airline digitalization progress toward revenue integrity and product customization, as the latest trend in customer-centric strategy of businesses and customer relationship management (eCRM).

近十年来的快速数字化改革（DX）证实了航空体验成为航空公司在降低成本、品牌效应、以及收益机会的时候显著受益的驱动因素, 这体现在当乘客通过网站购买飞机票和附加服务的时候。本论文旨在以Aegean航空DX进展为实例, 以事实来验证DX和收益管理（RM）的理论论断, 尤其在新兴RM措施和数字化分销渠道方面。

本论文采用文本分析航空网站和社交媒体表现的方法, 以展示结合过去和未来发展的目前情况分析。本论文通过结合两种DX模型, 数字化改革成熟概念（DTM）以及科技接受模型（TAM）, 对该航空公司的数字化进程进行评估。

本论文对Aegean航空公司的定量和定性的分析结果表明, 数字化改革营销计划, 结合新兴RM措施, 能够增加航空公司直接分销渠道（网站&APP）的订单收益, 相较于中间分销渠道（GDS）。因此, Aegean航空公司DX进程同时也降低了成本和增加了收益。

DX模型航空业措施, 结合直接vs间接售票模式, 能够评估航空业数字化进程改进收益情况和产品定制化的有效工具, 这作为以客户为核心的商业战略和客户关系管理（eCRM）最潮流的趋势。

The role of channels and their management in the eBusiness era is becoming increasingly important to customer relationship management. Traditional use of the application portfolio approach has been concerned with providing an appropriate basis for making investment decisions about IT applications for the firm. This paper argues that there is a gap between the established IS portfolio application theory and the requirements to support management investment decisions about eBusiness applications; Therefore, the paper proposes a channel benefits portfolio (CBP) approach to inform managers' channel investment decisions concerning business‐to‐customer channel interface. The suggested approach provides a conceptual framework and means to facilitate the alignment of the firm's portfolio with their customers' portfolio. The paper reports exploratory findings regarding customer channel preference and customer channel choice behaviour in the information search and purchasing stages during the customer decision‐making process on the basis of the CBP.

Different from manufacturing resources allocation problems, the prices and amounts of limited public service resources could not be changed with the consumers’ requirements and social fairness is the most important objective for improving allocation efficiency. To measure social fairness reasonably, the purpose of this paper is fourfold: first, divide social fairness into longitudinal comparative fairness and crosswise comparative fairness, therefore providing their calculation formula and describing the comprehensive fair degree by using the interval numbers. Second, the comparison regulations of interval numbers are given and the corresponding features are also described. Third, an extension of VIKOR method is put forward for evaluating social fairness of different allocation alternatives with interval numbers. Finally, a numerical example illustrates the proposed method and clarifies the main results developed in the paper.

In this paper, the author depicts the social fair degree as an interval number, and thus proposes the comparison method between any two interval numbers. Based on the basis procedure of the VIKOR method, the paper proposes an extension of the fuzzy VIKOR method with the interval numbers to rank and select the compromise allocation alternatives. Finally, a numerical example illustrates the practicability of the proposed method.

The comparison of interval numbers is very important when the author evaluates the decision alternatives. Through analyzing the present comparison methods, the paper proposes the simple method of comparing the interval numbers, which can obtain the same results with the above two methods. The fuzzy VIKOR method, a popular multi-criteria decision-making method, focusses on ranking and selecting from a set of alternatives in a fuzzy environment. For the fuzzy value, the paper also proposes the extension of the VIKOR method to perform an evaluation and get the compromise alternatives.

According to the huge customers’ requirement, how to improve their social fair degree has become the focus in public service resources allocation, where the social fair degree may be a comprehensive concept which includes the fair degree compared with all the other allocation alternatives and the fair degree compared with the other small group under the same allocation alternative. In the paper, the author defines the above two types of fair degree and then depicts the comprehensive fair degree as their integration, which will be interval numbers.