Online travel agents complain of second class treatment

NEWS A trade association of online travel agents has complained to the US government that its members are not being treated fairly by airline operators. The Interactive Travel Services Association says major airlines pay lower commission for flights booked online. A spokesman for the US Department of Transportation told Silicon.com it is assessing the validity of the claims. He could not explain why, if the claims are true true, flights booked online should have a lower status than telephone or face to face bookings. The US government is not formally investigating the issue, but it could incorporate its findings into new rules for the Computer Reservation Systems, which are currently under review.