"Based on our own customer feedback, and bearing in mind our emphasis on quality and value, we decided to present a neutral, consumer friendly offering to the users of www.lot.com. It has become clear since our adoption of this model, that this was the correct approach. Consumer feedback has been extremely positive, and we are now renting more cars than when we had a single supplier offering."

"Mr. Radoslaw Dutkowski, Head of E Commerce, Lot polish Airlines"

"During the first two weeks in January 2008, when Blue1 launched its new car booking engine, the company has doubled its revenue on car hire!!"

"Juha Jarvinen, Senior Vice-President Commercial, Blue1"

Insiders' Observations

4% Leverage

Next time you’re negotiating with an airline, check to see if your preferred car rental company isn’t represented on the carrier's web site. It could provide another bit of leverage.

According to SITA, which provides integrated IT solutions to 100 airline customers around the world, more than 4 percent of all airline passengers will rent a car from an airline web site — if it’s offered. That makes car rental a "hugely important source of ancillary revenue for airlines," says Richard Stokes, SITA’s senior vice president for passenger and travel solutions. In fact, SITA recently signed an agreement with Dublin-based CarTrawler, whose car rental distribution platform serves up inventory from 12,000 car rental locations in 134 countries. Linking with CarTrawler, Stokes continues, "ensures that our airline customers will reap the best possible rewards, and their passengers will get access to the best car rental rates available." SITA maintains corporate offices in Geneva, Brussels and Amsterdam but has regional offices around the world, including Atlanta, Ga.

"Mr. Richard Stokes, SITA’s Senior Vice President for Passenger and Travel "