American Airlines and Sabre Travel Network have extended their existing full-content agreement, removing a threat that the US carrier could disappear from the Sabre global distribution system (GDS).
Sabre and American announced the extension ahead of expiry of their current agreement today (August 31). The extension will last until 14 days after a resolution of American’s anti-trust claim against Sabre in a Texas court. No trial date has been set, but the case is expected to last well into next year.
American dropped its threat to seek an injunction against Sabre to prevent their agreement expiring. The companies remain locked in legal proceedings, as do American and rival GDS-owner Travelport. A similar extended agreement with Travelport, announced at the end of July, means American will also continue to appear on the Worldspan and Galileo GDSs.
A spokesman for the airline, a partner of British Airways, said: “American will continue talks with Sabre in an effort to define the basis of a new relationship.” American is keen to change the terms of its existing distribution agreements and drive bookings via its own online system, Direct Connect, to cut the cost of GDS display.
In a letter to retailers, American global sales vice-president Derek DeCross, said: “This agreement ensures regular, uninterrupted access to our content through the Sabre GDS as American continues to pursue an equitable resolution of our claims in the courts.”