CAAC to allow foreign carriers to sell tickets via GDS

CAAC announced that Chinese agents for foreign carriers can utilise ticketing systems and services provided by global distribution system (GDS) providers from 01-Oct-2012, breaking the monopoly on the market by TravelSky (Economic Observer, 16-Oct-2012). Amadeus appointed Bart Tomkins as managing director for Amadeus China in Sep-2012. Previously, foreign carriers were required to sell their fares via TravelSky, which charges foreign carriers fees several times higher than domestic carriers. In 2011, TravelSky reported a 15.5% increase in foreign airline ticket sales, compared to a 9.2% increase for domestic carriers. In the first six months of 2012, foreign tickets sold increased 28.4% to 7.7 million tickets compared to 7.6% increase to 157 millions tickets for domestic carriers.