Channel Chat

The Official Voice Of ETAA

IATA to offer TIDS to sub-agents from India

Reema Sisodia - Mumbai

Travel Industry Designator Service (TIDS) will henceforth be offered from India. What is paramount to non-IATA accredited travel agents is to be properly identified in the electronic reservation systems with a standard and unique numeric code. Sources from the IATA Mumbai office said that TIDS is the only identification number used by non-IATA travel agents. Major travel industry suppliers now require a valid IATA or TIDS numeric code from travel agents making bookings for their services. "Once you become a TIDS code holder, your staff may apply for an industry ID Card. TIDS proves to be an excellent opportunity for non-IATA agents for making bookings with airlines and being recognised by airlines as professional travel partners. We definitely want more sub-agents to make use of this offer," an IATA official mentioned.

Adding further, Karl Dantas, president ETAA, says, "TIDS is a good development although it has been around for many years globally. It is encouraging to learn that the India office of IATA BSP has taken an initiative to launch the scheme here. Prior to this everything had to be referred to Singapore. This will help create an identity for all non-IATA agents with the suppliers like airlines, hotels, car hire agencies, etc. Therefore it is a positive development as it would also help regulate the operations of the non-IATA agents and make them more responsible to the system." He also stated, "This is an excellent opportunity for the airlines and other suppliers including the IATA fraternity represented by TAFI, TAAI, etc, to interact in a better way and monitor the sub-agents."

TIDS assists travel industry suppliers to speed up and simplify reservations processing, as it identifies booking sources from the very first time. When using a Global Distribution System or Computerised Reservation Systems, the unique TIDS numeric code is automatically transmitted to each travel industry supplier in the PNR with one’s reservation.

Protects sub-agents with the CRSs

Says an official from IATA: "TIDS will be distinguished on all transactions with travel industry suppliers while reducing the risk of error and non-recognition of your travel agency. This is particularly important for sales tracking and the protection of your remuneration or commission earnings. Many suppliers use centralised travel agency commission programmes that identify travel agencies through a unique numeric identifier. If you participate in such a programme, you must ensure that your TIDS numeric code is quoted in all reservations so as to receive commission payments promptly." TIDS also has relevance for travel and tourism industry suppliers. TIDS is a unique reservation number, which captures point-of-sale details for your agency database management. Explains an IATA official, "In dealing with non-IATA agents, you may encounter difficulties in identifying booking sources due to pseudo numbers being allocated to them. As a result, many reservations are rejected or bookings are found to be invalid. TIDS is a unique number allocated to an agency's place of business, thereby, reducing the risk of reservation number duplication or the consequences of invalid or rejected bookings. TIDS has become the standard for non-IATA agents. Major airlines, hotels, car rental companies all over the world now require all non-IATA agents to register for TIDS. TIDS is part of the IATA Agency Database listing and is available by purchasing IATA Agency Data Products."

TIDS supporters

1. North America 2. Latin America, The Caribbean & Bermuda 3. Europe, Middle East and Africa 4. Asia and New Zealand 5. Australia and South Pacific Air Canada Air Transat Alamo Amadeus Global Travel Distribution Avis Best Western International British Airways Budget Rent A Car International Comfort Inn & Suites Continental Airlines Country Inn & Suites Courtyard Crowne Plaza Days Inn Econo Lodge Embassy Suites Encore Cruises Express Four Points Hertz Hilton Hilton International Holiday Inn Express Holiday Inn Worldwide Howard Johnson Hyatt Hotels & Resorts Inter-Continental Knights Inn Marriott Hotels, Resorts and Suites Metropolitan Hotel Millennium & Copthorne Hotels Motel 6 National Northwest Airlines Park Inn & Park Plaza Hotels Pegasus Commission Processing Princess Cruises Quality Inns, Hotels & Suites Radisson Hotels and Resorts Ramada International Renaissance Residence Inn Ritz-Carlton Sabre Sheraton Hotels & Resorts Sofitel SRS Worldhotels Staybridge Suites by Holiday Inn Studio 6 Super 8 The Century Plaza The Luxury Collection Travelodge Utell Villager Lodge Westin Hotels Westjet Worldspan