Google On Transactions: 'Never Say Never'

Google managing director for travel Rob Torres in an interview with Travel Weekly Plus left a door open to the company getting into transaction processing but said, "I don't think there is any rush for us to get into that side of the business because of the nuances that come with it."

"I can never say never" when it comes to "becoming a transaction engine, a merchant of record," Torres added. "But I just don't see it as crucial to what we're doing right now in trying to improve the user experience in travel. What we're doing is just trying to improve the search."

Around the time Google announced it would acquire ITA Software, pundits and others speculated about Google offering GDS-type services. Commentators quoted in the Nov. 13 Travel Weekly Plus article were mixed on the chances of that happening.