Sabre today announced a "long-term" full-content distribution deal with Tam. It marks the second such deal with a Brazilian airline that
previously used limited GDS distribution, and the third such agreement in South America since last summer.
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A Sabre spokeswoman said the Tam deal extends an existing agreement that "was not considered full content as the airline did not provide full content to Brazil point of sale."
According to Tam vice president of commercial and planning Paulo Castello Branco, the airline's full content will be available to travel agencies and corporations at Brazilian points of sale "early in the second quarter. Sabre subscribers in Brazil will have access to the exact same Tam content and services as all other GDSs, and even Tam's own travel agency portal e-Tam."
To access all of Tam's content, travel agencies will be required to participate in Sabre's "Brazil Efficiency Program." According to the Sabre spokeswoman, "There are no additional fees for travel agencies that don’t opt-in to the program. However, opting into the program is a prerequisite for accessing the additional Tam content. Participation in Sabre's Brazil Efficiency Program provides efficient access to Tam full content through the agent's preferred workflow."
Sabre in August expanded its distribution arrangement with Brazil's Gol from a regional to a global scope, and Gol upgraded its Sabre connectivity level to provide agents "real-time access" to the carrier's inventory system.
Sabre last month also announced that it and Lan Airlines extended their full-content distribution deal.
Lan also selected Sabre to provide reservations and operational systems.