You can bet your sweet petunias that those of you who have no clue what the NDC is will be caught with your buds snipped. Petals plucked. Sap sucked. You get my meaning….
According to the previous OJ Voting Booth – a hallmark of scientific statistical validity – 31% of you have never heard of NDC; 36% got the name wrong and the rest should fly back to 1981. It’s only been on the front page of every trade doodad (online and off) for the last 3 months.
IATA’s NDC is not a distribution channel. It is not a new GDS. But it will change how everyone across the planet buys travel. So you might want to lift your head up long enough from that green screen to get a glimpse of what’s coming round the bend.
I've done my best to understand it myself, Pumpkins, but it gets a bit hazy once people start talking XML. The only thing I can tell you for sure is that the NDC is more software than channel. And IATA has decided that since the airlines are nice and they like them, it will be the supreme force behind helping implement this new software system thing which will "merchandise" airfares like nobody's business -- essentially taking them from Woolworth shelves to a Holts personal shopping experience.
One thing is for sure: if you think NDC stands for No Damn Clue, it is time to get one. A clue that is.
