Amadeus increases European online travel agency market share to 64.2% in 2006

Madrid, Spain, 07 May 2007: Amadeus, a global leader in technology and distribution solutions for the travel and tourism industry, held the largest online travel agency market share in Western Europe in 2006 with 64.2%, an increase of 12.9 percentage points from 2005. The company also grew its online travel agency business in Asia Pacific and reached 19.9% market share in December 2006 compared with an average of 9.0% market share during 2005. In India, Amadeus recently announced that four online travel agencies have chosen Amadeus technology: Indiatimes, MakeMyTrip, Sify and Yatra.

Amadeus' continued success is based on the identification of the specific needs in the online travel agency segment and the company has developed and offers a unique suite of products and services to satisfy these requirements. One of the key elements in the Amadeus offer is the suite of low fare search solutions; during 2006 Amadeus launched Master Pricer Calendar, the only worldwide calendar display on the market. This innovative solution allows consumers to easily view a range of international flight and price options from multiple airlines in a calendar format.

"Our strategy is to provide online travel agencies with the best content and technology and we believe that our clear lead in Europe is confirmation that we are succeeding. Looking ahead, we plan to build on our success in Europe to take advantage of opportunities in the fast-growing Asia Pacific market," says Gillian Gibson, Vice President, Amadeus Multinational Customer Group.


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Notes to the editors:

Amadeus is the chosen technology partner for providers, sellers, and buyers of travel. The company provides distribution, IT and point-of-sale solutions to help its customers adapt, grow and succeed in the fast changing travel industry. Customer groups include travel providers (airlines, hotels, car rental companies, railway companies, ferry lines, cruise lines, insurance companies and tour operators), travel sellers (travel agencies) and travel buyers (corporations and travellers). Solutions are grouped in four solution categories – Distribution & Content, Sales & e-Commerce, Business Management and Services & Consulting.

Amadeus has central sites in Madrid (corporate headquarters & marketing), Nice (development) and Erding (Operations – data processing centre) and regional offices in Miami, Buenos Aires and Bangkok. At market level, Amadeus maintains customer operations in 76 countries covering more than 215 markets.

The company is owned by WAM Acquisition, whose shareholders are BC Partners, Cinven, Air France, Iberia and Lufthansa. Amadeus employs over 7,600 employees worldwide, representing 95 nationalities. Amadeus’ revenue for the twelve months ended 31 December 2006 was EUR2.683m.


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