Here's our roundup of the people, product and partner news from the global travel industry this week.
DerbySoft's executive hires
DerbySoft has restructured its executive team to drive growth in the hospitality sector, merging its connectivity and marketing solutions units into a unified hospitality business unit.
Duane Overgaard was named divisional CEO, and Ken Nishizu will serve as divisional chief operating officer for the hospitality business unit, overseeing solution groups including operations and support. Toni Marti has been promoted to head of marketing solutions, and Andrew Rae joins as vice president of global business development. Satyan Joshi was appointed global head of performance.
CellPoint Digital, Southwest Airlines
CellPoint Digital has expanded its partnership with Southwest Airlines to enhance Getaways by Southwest.
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The collaboration introduces CellPoint's cloud-native payment orchestration platform, enabling Southwest to offer a seamless, personalized payment experience.
The platform integrates multiple payment methods, including credit cards, travel credits and Rapid Rewards points in a single transaction. The upcoming solution, launching in 2025, aims to support Southwest's retail innovation and improve reliability, helping the airline navigate the transition to modern retailing with flexible, optimized payment solutions.
Sabre, Vietjet Air
Sabre has signed a distribution agreement with Vietjet Air, making the airline's content available through Sabre’s global distribution system for the first time.
The partnership expands Sabre's flight options, offering global access to Vietjet’s fares and extensive route network across Asia Pacific.
The integration will enhance travel agencies' ability to serve customers with more flight choices, fostering greater connectivity and contributing to the growth of Southeast Asia's travel industry. Vietjet's expanding network and pricing will now reach more travelers globally through Sabre-connected agencies.
Sabre has also launched British Airways' New Distribution Capability (NDC) content in its global travel marketplace.
Sabre-connected travel agencies can now shop, book and service British Airways’ NDC offers alongside traditional ATPCO/Edifact options.
The integration allows seamless management of offers via Sabre Red 360, Red Launchpad and APIs, offering a unified shopping experience.
Ixigo, Amadeus
Ixigo has partnered with Amadeus to improve its airline content by integrating Amadeus’ EDIFACT and NDC technology into its platform.
The pair aims to provide travelers with more choices, flexibility and a more seamless booking experience. Ixigo is hoping to strengthen its offerings, improve post-booking services and create a one-stop journey planning platform.
UATP, HRS
UATP has partnered with corporate lodging and payment technology specialist HRS to expand its offerings to corporate travelers. HRS will now accept UATP payments, providing access to a range of properties with corporate rates through HRS' AI-driven platform.
The partnership also introduces synergies for UATP clients by offering invoice automation, billing and reconciliation from a single provider, simplifying travel management.
The collaboration also enhances payment efficiency, enabling better program compliance and expanded hotel options for corporate travel, while aligning with both companies' commitment to digital innovation and streamlined processes.
Veltra's cruise platform
Veltra is launching a cruise booking platform, Veltra Cruise, targeting the Asian market, especially Japan.
The platform aims to offer affordable, short-term cruise options, making cruise travel accessible and appealing, to first-time cruisers and younger travelers. With real-time booking, multilingual support and 23 currencies, users can easily compare and secure cruise packages. The platform currently features more than 5,200 products, including offerings from MSC Cruises.
Veltra aims to grow the Asian cruise market, expand partnerships and potentially offer a B2B2C model, redefining cruise travel for a broader audience.
Wego, Waves
Wego, a travel app with presence in the Middle East and North Africa, has partnered with Waves, a yacht and chalet booking platform, to offer luxury travel experiences.
Wego users can now book yacht trips across Dubai, Kuwait, Jeddah and Qatar, with options for family-friendly journeys of up to six hours, accommodating 25 guests. The partnership is meant to improve both companies’ missions to elevate tourism.
Abdulrahman Alsadoun, CEO of Waves, said the integration expands its yacht experiences to a wider audience, aligning with Wego’s goal to offer hassle-free, premium travel options.
Trip.com, Malaysia Airlines
Trip.com has partnered with Malaysia Airlines to integrate the MHupgrade program, allowing passengers to bid for upgrades directly through Trip.com.
Previously available on Malaysia Airlines' website, MHupgrade offers economy and business class passengers the chance to upgrade to the next cabin class.
CT Ooi, associate vice president of Trip.com, said the partnership focuses on providing greater convenience and premium travel options. Dersenish Aresandiran, chief commercial officer of Malaysia Airlines, said the collaboration enhances its global reach while delivering enhanced experiences.
Mabrian, WTTC
Mabrian, a global travel intelligence platform and part of The Data Appeal Group, has partnered with the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) to provide data-driven insights for sustainable industry growth.
The collaboration gives WTTC access to comprehensive databases from Mabrian and The Data Appeal Company covering air connectivity, traveler sentiment, accommodation supply and event impact analysis.
Mirko Lalli, CEO of Mabrian, said the partnership should play a role in helping leaders anticipate trends and develop sustainable strategies. WTTC will use these insights to inform its research and policy efforts.
ATPCO's board chair
ATPCO has appointed Karen Slinger, director of global revenue at British Airways, as the new chair of its board of directors.
Slinger will lead ATPCO as it works to advance its airline merchandising and pricing data capabilities. She succeeds Maarten van der Lei of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. ATPCO is currently focusing on transforming its product catalog solution to enable dynamic pricing for 80% of airline offers by 2026.
Althoff Hotels, Ireckonu
Althoff Hotels has teamed up with Ireckonu to enhance personalized guest experiences across its 18 properties in Europe.
The partnership integrates Ireckonu’s CORE middleware and customer data platform with Althoff’s existing systems, streamlining guest interactions across hotels, dining and spas. This marks Ireckonu’s expansion into the DACH [German, Austrian and Swiss] market, reinforcing its role in data-driven hospitality innovation.
Tripkicks, SeatCash
Tripkicks has integrated SeatCash’s artificial intelligence-powered FareX platform to help corporate travelers make smarter booking decisions.
The partnership provides airfare predictions, alerting travelers when to book and highlighting potential savings through flexible date comparisons. By delivering actionable insights, the integration helps business travelers reduce costs while optimizing their trips.
This marks Tripkicks’ second major partner connection launch this quarter, following its carbon footprints initiative.
Stay22's enterprise partnerships lead
Stay22 has named Lucille Pickering as enterprise partnerships lead, leveraging her global experience to drive strategic alliances and revenue growth.
Stay22 continues expanding its solutions for travel publishers and affiliate marketers, helping monetize 182,000 pages with 1.5 billion views. The company aims to push innovation in the travel and ticketing space under Pickering’s leadership.
Accelya's non-executive director
Accelya has named Kathleen Merrill, former chief information officer of Southwest Airlines, as a non-executive director.
Merrill, with more than 20 years of experience in airline technology and digital transformation, will help guide Accelya’s strategy as it expands its FLX ONE platform. Her appointment, sourced through Vista Equity Partners’ board program, aligns with Accelya’s commitment to innovation and International Air Transport Association standards.
Accelya CEO Sam Gilliland highlighted Merrill’s expertise in driving technology transformation, emphasizing her role in shaping the company’s continued growth in modern airline commerce solutions.
*This roundup was created with the help of ChatGPT.