Shanghai - American Express (Amex) Business Travel has signed a three-year exclusive partnership agreement with China’s largest air travel electronic distribution services provider, TravelSky Technology.

During the agreement period, TravelSky will be the sole global distribution system (GDS) provider for all of Amex’s operations in China.

Amex president global travel services, Mr Charles Petruccelli, said: “We expect to develop more products together and to improve on service delivery and cost savings for customers in addition to the transfer of best practices.

“This agreement together with the three call centres we have established in Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai, demonstrates Amex’s commitment to build a leading travel business in China.”

TravelSky chairman, Mr Zhu Yong, said: “We are embarking on a new strategy of localisation and internationalisation by partnering a global player...Amex will be able to leverage on the IT solutions and distribution system facilities of TravelSky.

“There are three aspects to the partnership – e-commerce collaboration, the pulling together of resources in the civil aviation and travel market, and the integration of our air ticket sales capabilities with the travel management strengths of Amex.”

The significance of this partnership for TravelSky is not lost as China’s entry into the World Trade Organization will open the market to allow competition from other GDSs.

Mr Petruccelli added: “It’s a three-year partnership because we thought it would be good to give it a limited time, but this does not mean it will be terminated at the end of the term. We believe as the market continues to grow, our relationship will also grow with it. The fact that the market will be open to other GDSs does not undermine the strategic value of this partnership. In most markets there are many GDSs competing but in the end, there is always a dominant party. We will, within the agreement, develop new products specific to the industry here and strengthen the hold in the market.”

TravelSky processed 132 million passengers in 2004.

Amex has also launched a new corporate online solution – American Express Online – specific to the Chinese market.

The new tool will enable China-based companies to manage travel expenses and drive cost savings in three areas. It will automate the travel booking process, resulting in a lower transaction cost that is passed back as savings to the customer. It will also provide travellers clear fare options and require travellers to provide a reason if the lowest fare is not chosen.

In addition, front-end controls within the booking tool will direct travellers toward corporate preferred suppliers and negotiated fares, and exception reports will help companies capture missed savings.

Amex said it would provide online adoption support to companies using the new tool.