Global technology company Sabre Travel Network has teamed up with Finnair to sell its ancillary products to agencies using the Sabre GDS.  The two companies already have a distribution agreement in place.

Available today, Sabre-connected travel agents can reserve and buy ancillary services offered by the airline, starting immediately with pre-paid baggage. From next year agents will also be able to book pre-paid seats on behalf of their customers.

Harald Eisenaecher, Senior Vice President for Sabre EMEA, said: “The sale of ancillary services, such as pre-paid baggage and seating, is an extremely valuable revenue stream for airlines.

“We’re seeing more European carriers turn to ancillary products to boost their revenues, and Sabre provides a high-yield marketplace to help them sell these. It’s an area we’ve made significant investments in so airlines can market and sell their products, and agents can improve their efficiency and service by booking and fulfilling tickets and ancillaries together, and capturing back end booking data on their customers.”

Today’s announcement supports Sabre’s position to have an open marketplace for air travel, benefiting airlines, agencies, travel managers and travellers by keeping travel competitive, transparent and easy.

Jani Peuhkurinen, Finnair’s Head of Global Corporate Sales and GDS Distribution, said: “Over the last few years Finnair has made terrific strides in growing its network value, especially on strategically important premium Asian Europe traffic.  Distribution through travel agencies and Sabre’s global reach ensures we will continue to provide full content to intermediaries, allowing Finnair to deepen its footprint in markets around the world.

“Revenue generated from the sale of ancillary services is hugely important to the modern airline. Leveraging the Sabre travel agency network will allow our ancillary business to grow.”

Finnair joins a list of airlines, including Alitalia, Air New Zealand and US Airways already selling ancillary products through the Sabre GDS.  In addition, Air France-KLM German Wings and Aegean have signed up to offer ancillary services and bundled fares through the GDS.