Confident that travel will regain its momentum as the leading form of e-commerce, FareChase, Inc., a provider of web automation software for the travel industry, today named Krista Pappas as Senior Vice President, Strategic Development and Partnerships.
Ms. Pappas, a leading consultant for online travel technologies, was Senior Analyst and Director of Internet Travel Services of Gomez`s worldwide travel consulting services for the last three years.

Krista is recognized as an expert on e-commerce transactions for consumers in the travel industry. She has worked with leading technology firms to evaluate new travel technologies and how they impact the sale and purchase of travel services. She also examines e-commerce vendor strategies, and the growing competitive environment between traditional brick-and-mortar travel companies and pure-play Internet companies.

“Airlines and travel providers are already returning to the Internet to leverage the Web to reduce distribution costs and fill seats at a time when consumers are even more sensitive to pricing,” said Lior Delgo, President, FareChase. “In this new era, we are proud to have enlisted Krista Pappas to explain to airlines, travel providers and consumers the benefits of FareChase`s Web automation technology, which harnesses the power of the Internet to search and discover competitive pricing from virtually every travel Web site for travel in any market,” said Delgo.

“A new generation of consumers who have been brought up on Internet only fares, such as negotiated fares, net fares and discounted fares, are conditioned to expect prices that are plainly and visibly related to value,” said Ms. Pappas. “If airlines are to provide a cost effective alternative to the traditional way of selling tickets and distribute their inventory through the Internet, then FareChase`s search engine is a critical component for how the travel industry manages airfare inventory in the future,” she added.

Ms. Pappas has also worked with leading online travel suppliers and distributors to provide the necessary insight to help them create and execute a better online offering. She has been cited in major national publications and is a frequent speaker on the subject of the Internet`s impact on the travel industry.

Ms. Pappas joins a management team headed by FareChase`s founders, Delgo, and Ofer Shaked, CTO, Boaz Behar, Vice President, R&D, and Motti Kirschenbaum, Chairman of the Board.

In addition to Mr. Kirschenbaum, an Israeli businessman and developer of the High Tech Center at Ben Gurion Airport, other members of the Board include: Dr. Yechiam Yemini, co-founder of Comverse Technology, Inc.; and Hanan Gilutz, co-founder of Orbotech, Ltd.

www.farechase.com

——-