ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J. -- Etravnet.com, a travel industry Internet operator and
agency franchisor, was expected to launch this week its
name-your-own-price, electronic hotel reservations service, which
goes by the name Haggle With Us.
The company, which is involved in several Internet-related
travel ventures -- as well as conventional, full-service travel
agencies -- is in the process of nailing down the final details of
the program.
Executive vice president Stephanie Abrams said that Haggle With
Us will differ from other travel arrangement bargaining plans in
that it will not involve blind bidding.
"Haggle With Us will allow consumers to actively negotiate the
price of a hotel room directly with hotels in real time," she said.
"And agents can use it to make reservations at a rate acceptable to
their clients. Then, of course," she continued, "they can charge
the client a fee for the service in lieu of a commission."
The new service will convert price bids and Internet requests
into a telephone call directly to the hotel. The reservations agent
then will have the option to accept the bid by pressing 1, standing
firm at the published price by pressing 2 or making a counter-offer
by pressing 3.
Etravnet.com hopes to have air seats, car rentals, cruises and
tour packages available through Haggle With Us by the middle of
this year.
Meanwhile, the company opened four more travel agency franchises
in Wal-Mart stores -- in Athens, Ga.; Bullhead City, Ariz.;
Columbus, Ohio, and Irving, Texas -- bringing its penetration of
Wal-Mart stores to 50.
Its franchise network to date consists of 350 agencies in 37
states.