Qantas' new distribution model - the Qantas Channel - comes into effect today and is set to modernise the way agencies book fares and deliver personalised experiences to customers.

The Qantas Channel is part of the broader digital strategy to enhance Qantas' booking systems, and is a new agreement between the airline and its agency partners that provides access to a wide range of Qantas fares, products and information for agents.  

Agencies who have signed up to the Qantas Channel will, over time, be able to offer customers new content, sourced from the NDC-enabled Qantas Distribution Platform (QDP), which is not currently available via traditional indirect booking systems. 

Qantas has partnered with all of the major Global Distribution Systems to make the Qantas Channel available to agencies globally and continues to work with other technology partners to deliver the Qantas Channel and QDP content.

Thousands of agencies around the world have signed up to the Qantas Channel, representing around 90 per cent of Qantas' revenue from trade partners.

Qantas Executive Manager Sales and Distribution, Igor Kwiatkowski, said the launch of the Qantas Channel was an important milestone in the transformation of the airline's distribution strategy.

"The launch of the Qantas Channel, together with our new distribution platform will, over time, empower our agency partners to deliver more enriched and personalised experiences for our mutual customers," said Mr Kwiatkowski.

"We've observed other international airlines adopt new distribution models and recognise that the adoption of the new technology takes time. That's why we've deliberately taken a phased, collaborative approach so that the Qantas Channel, and the new content that it will offer, can be delivered in the most seamless way possible.

"We'll continue to work closely with our agency partners to prepare for the introduction of the new technology, with the benefits of our new distribution platform expected to start flowing through in the coming months.

"Greater reward and recognition of our Frequent Flyers and the ability to deliver targeted offers for our agency partners are just some of the benefits that are in the pipeline. Ultimately, our vision is to offer our agency partners a bigger toolkit than what they can offer our customers today."

Agencies that have not registered for the Qantas Channel may incur a channel fee, in addition to no longer being able to access a wide range of traditional fares being made available via indirect channels or having access to the new content via the QDP as it becomes available. 

Registration for the Qantas Channel remains open for all agencies. For more information and to register, visit http://www.qantasagencyconnect.com/qantas-channel.

Contributed by Qantas