The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) estimated that worldwide spending for personal travel was $2.8 trillion in 2005, a figure that increasing annually. The travel industry, housing the Travel suppliers - such as airlines, car rental agencies, and hotels, online and offline travel agencies - the Global distribution systems (GDSs), and other companies that fulfill interrelated customer needs or large enterprises, is witnessing phenomenal growth.

Travel companies are under severe pressure to find pioneering ways to both maximize revenue and reduce costs. Margins are razor thin, the pool of high value customers continues to shrink, competition is fierce and there is no integrated view of the business. The revolutionary medium of the Internet has changed the way travel is purchased. The Internet has opened access to vast amounts of information for research purposes and also the ability to by-pass a travel agent and book directly online, taking advantage of many cost benefits.