ATPCO announced that more than 30 major channels are now live with Routehappy UPA (Universal Product Attributes) integrations, enhancing airline offers and providing visual shopping experiences. (UPAs describe fares, products and services with visual content.)

Leaders across various flight shopping platforms are embracing UPA content, according to the announcement. OTAs and other meta-sites such as Expedia, KAYAK, Trip.com and Webjet are showcasing UPA content to their customers, along with corporate booking tools such as Concur, Spotnana and Navan.

Global distribution systems Amadeus, Sabre and TravelSky, according to the announcement, are live with merchandising integrations that give flight shoppers “a clear and visually compelling booking experience that rivals Amazon and other large retailers.” Airlines are also integrating this onto their direct channels, with Emirates, Gulf Air and Air France KLM among those “prioritizing their merchandising strategies to give consumers a better shopping experience.”

The value of UPAs, according to the announcement, is in the combination of targeted messaging and visual content that is relevant for shoppers “deep in the purchase path.” UPAs, said the company, bring unique airline fares, products and services to life with images, infographics, messaging, videos and cabin tours. UPA content can be precisely targeted by aircraft, cabin, route, time of day, fare brand and more, showing flight shoppers time-sensitive and relevant content as they shop. The content is now available in 28 languages, and alt-text was recently added to support visually impaired shoppers.

Chris Phillips, vice president, global sales, said the company is at “an exciting inflection point.” He added that Routehappy’s Amenities and UTA (Universal Ticket Attributes) tools are showing exceptional growth, with more than 90% coverage of global flight schedules; and visual UPA content nearing 50% coverage.

Channels are now seeing the financial and customer satisfaction benefits of delivering this content to consumers, said Phillips, “and we are on track for another exceptional year of UPA integrations growth.” He said regular flight shoppers, whether on corporate booking tools or OTAs, will start to see more visual content with each flight search, regardless of where they are searching.

Image: Atop