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More Travelers Using Internet to Plan and Book Travel

Aired April 15, 2000 - 6:22 p.m. ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

ANDRIA HALL, CNN ANCHOR: For inexpensive travel on this planet, you might think about booking your tickets online.

As CNN's Kalin Thomas-Samuel reports, you might be able to get more miles for your money on the Internet.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KALIN THOMAS-SAMUEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With so many travel Web sites on the Internet, it's no wonder that more and more travelers are using the World Wide Web to plan and book travel. A recent report by the Travel Industry Association of America noted that the number of online travelers has almost tripled since 1996, to a total of 85 million last year.

Many are comparing prices they get online to those they get from calling airlines directly.

CHRIS MCGINNIS, PRESIDENT, TRAVELSKILL.COM: It's like a shopping mall. Most people in any shopping mall are not buying at the time -- they're window shopping, they're doing research, they're comparing. So I think that online, that's what most people are doing as well.

THOMAS-SAMUEL: In fact, only 32 percent of Internet travelers actually book and pay for reservations online. One reason: Fares aren't always cheaper online.

CHRIS SCHUTTE, PHOCUSWRIGHT INC.: Like anything else, there are certainly good prices and there are some not-so-good prices.

THOMAS-SAMUEL: Another reason online bookings aren't as high as online planning: Many travelers are still worried about security on the Internet.

SCHUTTE: A lot of people still have concerns about privacy, and they still have some concerns about credit card security. Both of those are decreasing quickly, and we find that as soon as someone actually consummates a purchase online, both of those fears go way down, until they become repeat purchasers.

THOMAS-SAMUEL: So will Internet travel wipe out the need for travel agents? It depends on who you ask.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're getting squeezed out, and the time will come when they'll be out completely, it looks like.

WILLIAM MALONEY, CTC, AMERICAN SOCIETY OF TRAVEL AGENTS: Well right now, the travel agents in the United States do in excess of $126 billion worth of sales. The Internet right now is doing about $2 billion or $3 billion worth of sales. We still expect the travel agents to prosper and to control the lion's share of domestic and international travel in the years to come.

THOMAS-SAMUEL: The American Society of Travel Agents says travel agents will always be needed to help interpret and confirm what travelers find on the Internet.

Kalin Thomas-Samuel, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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