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Air Cargo Industry Leaders Continue Commitment to Pricing and Revenue Management Optimization Despite Today’s Economic Challenges

Dépèche transmise le 18 août 2009 par Business Wire

Air Cargo Industry Leaders Continue Commitment to Pricing and Revenue Management Optimization Despite Today’s Economic Challenges

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With airlines under increasing pressure to boost revenue in all business sectors, revenue management in the air cargo industry is gaining ground as a best practice applied by Delta, Continental Airlines and other leading air carriers. Recently, representatives of these and other companies attended the Cargo User Conference hosted by JDA^® Software Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: JDAS) in Atlanta. During the conference, attendees discussed the importance of business process analysis, and learned how JDA’s next-generation price optimization technology can help drive profits in times of excess capacity, as well as assessed the impact from toughening regulatory requirements.

A major air cargo provider presented an overview of its recent revenue management project implementation that emphasized the importance of balancing the synergies of people, processes and technology with a company’s overall IT strategy and revenue management goals. Conference attendees benefited from an in-depth discussion of how to use business process modeling that encompasses revenue management and its impact on sales, accounting, operational policies and client dynamics.

“The record attendance at our conference and the lineup of industry leaders who spoke about the issues illustrates the growing focus on revenue management strategies,” said Andy Archer, group vice president, service industries, JDA Software. “Even with reduced demand and capacity, air cargo companies are focused on pricing and revenue management solutions, and are working with JDA to continue improvement in this critical area. The conference gave us an opportunity to offer our vision for future product development and to gather ideas for ongoing improvement.”

Revenue Management Experts Provide Perspective, Guidance

Speakers at the Cargo User Conference consisted of noted authorities who have pioneered pricing and revenue management approaches for air cargo, including the following:

• Raja Kasilingam, chief executive officer of CargoINTEL, discussed the impact of tighter U.S. Department of Homeland Security regulations on cargo security inspection mandates and the added costs those regulations will bring. He also acknowledged that many companies are looking at pricing and revenue management technology to uncover opportunities to increase revenues during the economic downturn, and that JDA is in a key position to address the emerging realities facing the air cargo industry.

• Dr. Pelin Pekgun-Cakmak, a noted researcher and architect of pricing solutions across multiple industries in collaboration with JDA, presented the results of her research on innovative methods to determine price elasticity in travel-related industries. She remarked that due to unique characteristics present within the travel industry, standard pricing theories and practices would lead to incorrect assumptions concerning consumer behavior and the impact of price changes on demand.
• Jason Cameron, general manager of business planning and analysis, Delta Air Cargo, led a session on key performance indicators and ideal reporting strategies for the air cargo sector. Cameron discussed the challenges of accurate and insightful reporting, and emphasized that each analysis must be tailored to individual consumers’ needs – whether they are in operations or corporate strategy positions.
• JDA’s Suresh Acharya, vice president, analytical services, and Fion Choi, operations research consultant, highlighted that while revenue management techniques work well when carriers are capacity constrained, there are additional revenue opportunities available when excess capacity exists by applying price optimization techniques. Results from a working prototype of JDA’s Travel Price Optimizer™ were then presented to session attendees. The exercise illustrated a 3 percent revenue improvement during challenging economic times when demand is less than the available capacity.

Elevating Air Cargo Revenue Management from Manual Processes

A common theme at the Cargo User Conference was how JDA is prompting more carriers to see that manual measures are insufficient to meet the increased revenue targets of today’s aviation industry. The JDA solution elevates air cargo revenue management from the traditional manual process focused on controlling availability and yielding less-profitable ship dates, to a fully automated approach that optimizes pricing. The solution then recommends the best price for all dates, forecasting rates based on price sensitive revenue management data, and factoring in all of the variables that make up air cargo revenue management such as demand, volume and competitive rates.

Commenting on the success of the conference, David King, senior manager of cargo revenue management, Continental Airlines, said, “JDA continues to grow the quality and scope of its solution offerings to the Air Cargo market. We look forward to identifying additional revenue opportunities on top of the proven results the JDA solutions have already delivered.”

At the conference, JDA’s User Group weighed in on the Company’s product roadmap for the coming year, and how new updates and releases will be managed for JDA’s Price Sensitive Revenue Management solution suite.

About JDA Software Services Industries Group

JDA Services Industries Group helps companies in the Travel, Transportation, Hospitality and Media industries balance supply and demand through innovative forecasting, pricing and revenue management solutions. The result is a dramatic increase in revenue, margin and efficiency. JDA clients include Carlson Worldwide, Continental Airlines & Cargo, Harrah’s Entertainment, Omni Hotels, Princess Cruise Lines, Eurostar and TUI Travel (formerly Thomson Holidays).

About JDA Software Group, Inc.

JDA^® Software Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: JDAS) is the world’s leading supply chain solutions provider, helping companies optimize operations and improve profitability. JDA drives business efficiency for its global customer base of more than 5,800 retailers, manufacturers, wholesaler-distributors and services industries companies through deep domain expertise and innovative solutions. JDA's combination of unmatched services, together with its integrated yet modular solutions for merchandising, supply chain planning and execution and revenue management, leverage the strong heritage and knowledge capital of market leaders including Manugistics, E3, Intactix and Arthur. When supply chain results matter, companies turn to JDA. For more information about JDA, visit www.jda.com or contact us at [email protected] or call +1.800.479.7382 / +1.480.308.3000.

We do not believe this press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Nevertheless, if remarks in this press release are considered to be “forward-looking” or to have forward-looking implications (including statements by Andy Archer, Raja Kasilingam, Dr. Pelin Pekgun-Cakmak, Jason Cameron, Suresh Acharya, Fion Choi, David King and by JDA regarding anticipated benefits from the implementation of JDA’s products), we would remind our investors and prospective investors that future events may involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include the risk that complex software solutions such as JDA’s may be costly and time-consuming to implement and/or may not produce the level of benefits anticipated by the parties at the outset of the project. Other risks and uncertainties that may affect our business are detailed from time to time in the “Risks Factors” section of our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. As a result of these and other risks, actual results may differ materially from those predicted. We undertake no obligation to update information in this release.

“JDA,” “Price Sensitive Revenue Management solution suite” and “Travel Price Optimizer™” are trademarks or registered trademarks of JDA Software Group, Inc. Any trade, product or service name referenced in this document using the name “JDA” is a trademark and/or property of JDA Software Group, Inc.