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ITA Software and Alaska Air Group Sign Multi-Year Contract Extension

Dépèche transmise le 16 avril 2009 par Business Wire

ITA Software and Alaska Air Group Sign Multi-Year Contract Extension

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ITA Software, Inc., the leader in developing innovative solutions for the travel industry, today announced it has signed a multi-year contract renewal with Alaska Air Group (www.alaskaair.com), parent company of Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. An early adopter of ITA Software’s technology-based solutions, alaskaair.com was the first airline Web site to deploy ITA Software’s ReShop to deliver greater airfare shopping and booking flexibility for customers.

Alaska Air Group has been a customer since 2003 and is one of the first airline companies to take full advantage of the broad range of QPX system features and functionality. In addition to ReShop and Reward solutions, Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air’s customers benefit from flexible date and multiple destination shopping features.

“ITA Software’s technology helps us provide customers with more options when shopping for flights,” said Steve Jarvis, Alaska Airlines’ vice president of marketing, sales and customer experience. “We are constantly striving to create a better customer experience, while identifying opportunities to streamline operations and become a more efficient airline. ITA Software has evolved with our business needs and continues to help us deliver creative solutions for alaskaair.com.”

QPX-based ReShop reduces costs and improves operational efficiencies by taking the complexity out of one of the most labor-intensive and error-prone transactions: pre- and post-departure itinerary changes. The technology empowers consumers through self-service, Web-based channels. Alaskaair.com is also pioneering new applications of ReShop for online and offline applications. Additionally, the Web site uses the QPX Reward feature to provide customers with a simple, highly automated, self-service experience for award redemption.

“ITA and Alaska Air Group have a strong relationship that has evolved over the years. Together, we’ve deployed innovative technology solutions to help Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air quickly adapt to changing market conditions and customer expectations,” said Gianni Marostica, chief commercial officer, ITA Software. “Alaska Air Group has demonstrated its ability to think differently about current and future business challenges, and we are proud to work with them in developing new approaches to maximize the value of ITA’s market leading technology and enhance the customer experience.”

About Alaska Air Group

Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK), together serve more than 90 cities through an expansive network in Alaska, the Lower 48, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico. Alaska Airlines ranked “Highest in Customer Satisfaction among Traditional Network Carriers (tie)” in the J.D. Power and Associates 2008 North America Airline Satisfaction Study^SM. For reservations, visit alaskaair.com. For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air Newsroom at alaskaair.com/newsroom.

About ITA Software

ITA Software (www.itasoftware.com) is a leader in developing innovative solutions for the travel industry. ITA’s QPX, the industry’s most comprehensive airfare shopping system, is used by leading airlines and online travel companies worldwide including Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Live Search Farecast by Microsoft, Hotwire, Kayak, Orbitz, TAP Portugal Airlines, TripAdvisor, United Airlines, US Airways and others. ITA is currently building a radically new passenger reservation system with launch partner Air Canada. In 2008, the company was ranked as an Inc. 5000 fastest growing private company. ITA was founded by computer scientists from MIT and is headquartered in Cambridge, Mass.