he New Distribution Capability is a technology standard with a straightforward premise: to modernize airline distribution in the agency channel.

        To travel management companies, however, it’s anything but straightforward.
        The standard’s progenitor, the International Air Transport Association, says NDC is an overdue upgrade so that airlines can bridge the gap between the manner they sell through their own websites with the methods travel agencies use to distribute fares, bundles and ancillary products in their channels. To airlines, NDC lets them send richer fare and product data to agencies and better understand who is shopping. This, they say, will let them tailor airline offers, fares and bundles to shoppers, be they corporate or leisure.
        The Beat this year surveyed 30 TMCs to learn how they view the NDC standard and better understand how they approach adoption and enablement.
        Most TMC respondents view NDC’s goal of richer airline content as a net positive.
        However, as airlines, technology operators, distributors and travel agencies install the plumbing to scale adoption, some cracks have been laid bare. This has forced TMCs to cope with some practical challenges of shopping, booking and servicing NDC-type content, and spurred investment to rework agency systems to enable NDC.
        Further, some airlines have hitched controversial commercial elements to their NDC strategies, from levying surcharges on GDSs to removing price points from that preferred channel. This has made TMCs wary of NDC’s economic implications.