JUPITER, Fla. -- Marriott is losing millions in room revenue every
year because it doesn't recognize many independent agents, who are
selling away from the chain, according to the Outside Sales Support
Network, a group of independent agents.
In a letter to Marriott, OSSN president Gary Fee said agencies
in the ID program sponsored by OSSN and ARTA are selling away from
Marriott to the tune of at least $5 million a year. Fee said the
figure is based on estimates provided by 300 respondents to a
survey of the 500 members who joined the group's ID program, called
TRUE (Travel Retailers Universal Enumeration).
He estimated that if all TRUE agents plus participants in the
ASTA counterpart, Travelsellers.com, were included, the figure
would be at least $10 million.
In response, Marriott senior director, travel agency programs
Terry Lee acknowledged that "a great majority of TRUE and
Travelsellers.com agents are professionals," but the company
"respectfully stands by" its decision to accept only two
designators for independent agents: IATA's Travel Industry
Designator Service, operated outside the U.S., and, in the U.S.,
the Travel Services Intermediary program operated by Iatan.
Fred Miller, Marriott's vice president of intermediary sales and
marketing, said it is too easy, under the TRUE type of program, for
individuals to pretend to be agents when they are merely booking
travel for themselves or their company.