SALT LAKE CITY, July 17, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- The Data Advisory Board released a white paper that recommends ways for corporations to protect private travel data while still giving airlines the information they need to monitor corporate contracts.
The DAB -- a group of corporate travel managers, travel suppliers, travel-management companies and data-management systems and services providers -- released its findings at the National Business Travel Association's annual conference and tradeshow. What prompted the DAB white paper was airlines beginning to use third-party vendors to collect, maintain and analyze travel data from corporate customers.
"Data privacy is a very big issue with corporations today," said HP's Kevin M. Iwamoto, who is president of NBTA. "We are rightfully concerned about what data we provide to airlines and their third-party data collectors, and how that data is handled. The DAB's recommendations are a great compromise -- they protect the sensitive portions of our corporate travel data while still providing airlines with all the information they need to properly monitor corporate contracts."
Under the DAB's proposed data standards, corporations would provide the following data elements to airlines or the vendor an airline hires to collect such data: airport of origin, destination airport, class of service, segments flown on the contracted carrier, segments flown on all carriers, money spent on the contracted carrier and money spent on all carriers.
"Common data standards are a logical progression for this industry," said Cheryl Hutchinson, president of the Association of Corporate Travel Executives. "Yet with the ownership of data and the right to access it still hotly contested, an industry-wide sense of agreement on this issue must be the first step. ACTE supports the joint development of common data standards as the result of a dialogue between corporate consumers, travel service suppliers and third-party data collectors."
About the Data Advisory Board
The Data Advisory Board is composed of corporate travel managers, travel suppliers, travel-management companies and companies that sell data-management systems and services. The DAB is led by Hi-Mark Software of Roswell, Ga.; TRX Data Services Inc. of McLean, Va.; and Cornerstone Information Systems of Bloomington, Ind. Other selected member companies include Bristol-Myers Squibb, eCLIPSE Advisors, HP, Ingersoll-Rand and Rosenbluth International.