Wardrope warns of digital TVthreat to trade

Technology update

Wardrope warns of digital TVthreat to trade

Report by ISABEL CHOAT

INTERACTIVE digital television will kill off tour operator brochures – and some travel agents – within the next five to 10 years, delegates at the ABTA convention in Kos were told.

Gary Wardrope, commercial director of interactive TV travel agency Travel Deals Direct, said that compared with television, which allows consumers to view resorts and destinations in an exciting and detailed way, brochures are “flat”.

“Brochures don’t motivate people the way that television does,” he said.

He added that the technology exists to enable consumers to download video footage of specific destinations when they want to rather than having to wait for a programme at a set time.

Keith Webber, head of travel services at cable firm Telewest, who shared the staged with Wardrope in a discussion on the impact of digital TV on the travel industry, said the medium will inevitably take market share away from high-street travel agencies, putting some of them out of business.

“In three years time 20% of travel will be sold through interactive TV. Will the remaining 80% of the market support the number of agents at the moment? I don’t think so,” said Webber.

Both predicted that digital TV will have a greater impact on holiday sales than theInternet.

“Research by the Henley Centre shows that, by the end of next year, more households will be connected to digital TV than to the Internet,” said Wardrope.

“Interactive TV is the most powerful and intrusive new sales channel available and will have a fundamental effect on holiday buying behaviour.”

Making its mark: interactive digital TV could account for 20% of sales within the next three years