Mobile ticketing - Aviation
Airlines now operate in a climate of increased security measures, intense competition and rising oil prices which all place pressure on companies to not only retain consumer confidence and keep them flying, but also provide high levels of service whilst managing costs.
One key area that has already been hugely beneficial to the air industry in terms of managing costs has been that of electronic ticketing. So much so that the IATA (International Air Transport Association) calculates that if air transport operators can migrate 100% of processing from paper to electronic ticketing, then globally it would save the industry US $3billion per year. Such is the importance attached to this that it is it the stated aim of the IATA that paper ticketing will have been eliminated by the end of 2007.
Mobile ticketing will be a key part of this, as Bryan Wilson, Project director for e-ticketing at IATA has acknowledged:
"IATA is driving the industry initiative to implement 100% electronic ticketing by the end of 2007 to enhance passenger convenience and save the industry US$3bn in annual costs. As a mobile phone is a receiving device....IATA's e ticketing initiative effectively enables m-ticketing. There is no reason why a customer today should not be able to buy an e ticket from a browser enabled mobile phone."*
*Source Juniper Research, Ticketing Goes Mobile, January 2006
Swiftpass mobile ticketing can offer Air operators an opportunity to ease the process of ticket acquisition and fulfilment for their passengers whilst reducing much of the costs associated with traditional paper tickets. Swiftpass mobile ticketing can help eliminate printing, postage, shipping, storage and accounting costs. Not to mention the costs for collateral materials (envelopes/ticket jackets). A further benefit is also the reduction in airport counter space and ground crew through the increased use of self-service, mobile and online check-in facilities.
Integration between Swiftpass and existing ticketing systems allows acquisition to be made via all current legacy systems, allowing passengers to purchase and receive secure, digital tickets at any time of day and at their convenience. Instant delivery also allows mobile tickets to be acquired by passengers right up to the point of embarking on their journey and negates the requirement to queue for collection or check-in.
The flexibility and bundling capabilities of the Swiftpass system allows passengers to utilise a single mobile ticket for several purposes. For example, one mobile ticket could act as a boarding pass, discount in duty free, access to the VIP lounge, free drink air-side and a long-stay car parking ticket, with the same mobile barcode being scanned at each redemption point. This can provide air operators with opportunities to add value to tickets or exploit partnership ties. In addition, as all ticket scanning transactions are tracked in real-time, it would be possible to monitor the movement of passengers through the terminal, departure area and at gate.