Star Alliance has developed and implemented a digital services platform (DSP) in partnership with professional services company Accenture that allows customers to access a range of member airlines’ services through each other’s apps.
The DSP can gather data provided by individual member airlines or third party sources and make it available to all other members, enabling them to build it into their own customer-facing digital applications.
Star Alliance says the long-term aim of the DSP is to allow passengers to use any member airline’s website or mobile app to obtain all the information they need for travel on several member airlines.
Once a service offer is available from the DSP, Star Alliance airlines can decide individually if and when they make it available to their own customers. For instance, a seat selection service launched earlier this month makes it possible for United Airlines passengers to select a seat on Singapore Airlines flights booked via United’s website or app. This means customers on certain fare types can choose their seats for their entire journey at the time of booking rather than during online check-in.
Lufthansa is also currently using the DSP to provide baggage tracking information for its customers on journeys that include flights on other Star Alliance airlines.
Jeffrey Goh, CEO of Star Alliance, said: “Most frequent travellers have a ‘home airline’ in our network and would prefer to control their entire travel experience through a single app or website. We are therefore working to create central capabilities that can be shared for use by our individual members.”
Star Alliance says the DSP is part of its strategy to enhance the customer experience by offering more self-service technologies where possible, including at passenger and baggage check-in and at the boarding gate.
Robert Zippel from Accenture’s travel industry practice, added: “Airlines need to embrace collaboration with their alliance member carriers and associated ecosystems to orchestrate a greater understanding of a traveller’s fast-changing requirements. By offering real-time data exchange and standardised applications to improve a customer’s travel experience for multiple carrier journeys and beyond, the Star Alliance DSP is a great example of a system that enables this kind of collaboration.”
staralliance.co.uk; accenture.com