Report shows airlines making slow progress with NDC technology

While two-thirds of airlines have at least begun the process of using NDC technology to digitize their third-party merchandising capabilities, only 27% have begun the holistic approach of digitizing their order processing, servicing and settlement capabilities. 

That's according to a new study from Atmosphere Research Group. 

"There is progress," Atmosphere founder Henry Harteveldt said in an interview. "And as I say in the report, the only thing that moves fast at an airline are the airplanes." 

Atmosphere surveyed 78 airlines online and conducted phone interviews with 28 retailing professionals for its "Future of Airline Retailing" report. The study was supported by Accelya, a leader in developing digital merchandising and order-management solutions for airlines.

Proponents of modernizing airline retailing aspire for the industry to sell airline products and service orders via digital platforms that have similar capabilities to online retailers like Amazon. On the sales side, that means using a wide selection of product images. It also means personalizing search query responses through the effective use of a customer's previous purchase history as well as other customer metrics.