Delta Air Lines and Sabre announced on Monday a transformative global distribution agreement that will evolve their long-standing partnership and drive change in the travel industry through commercial and technological innovation. The new, value-based, multi-year distribution agreement represents an industry-first model that creates value for the entire travel ecosystem, including travel agencies and travelers.

“Our vision is to shift the mindset of the entire ecosystem toward modern retailing, selling customers what they want, where they want it and how they want it across all channels,” said Delta’s Jeff Lobl, Managing Director - Global Distribution. “We are grateful to Sabre for their innovative and pioneering spirit in taking this journey with Delta and establishing a new and exciting path forward for third-party distribution.”

Aligning the interests of the global travel marketplace, the companies expect the innovative distribution agreement to transform the way travel partners do business – ensuring Sabre-connected travel buyers continue to have access to Delta’s content globally and enabling Delta to continue to extend its reach with Sabre’s valuable network of global travel buyers.

Delta’s omni-channel, customer-centric approach invests across all channels to build experiences and capabilities to provide consumers with an elevated shopping experience in their preferred channel. This new approach to retail transformation will create value for all stakeholders in the ecosystem by enhancing traveler experiences and offering customer choice.

“Sabre is on a journey to create a new marketplace for personalized travel. Technology innovation combined with collaborative partnerships are key to realizing our vision,” said Wade Jones, Chief Product Officer for Sabre Travel Solutions. “This new agreement is one example of that partnership philosophy, and our innovation to transform our storefront experience reinforces this by ensuring Delta and Sabre’s mutual customers can shop with confidence and see the value of the offerings available to them.”

The New Airline Storefront, developed by Sabre in collaboration with Delta, CWT and other thought-leading partners, is now fully available in Sabre Red 360 and provides digital “shelves” that better organize an airline’s offerings in a side-by-side display to enhance the traveler’s shopping experience – driving value for both sellers and buyers across the travel ecosystem.

“Sabre’s new airline storefront and rich content makes it easier to understand new airline product offerings and simplifies the purchasing decision. CWT is a strong supporter of a collaborative approach to address an improved user experience for our counselors; equating to a better trip planning experience for the traveler,” said Erik Magnuson, V.P. – Product Management, Mobility & Payments for CWT. “We see the storefront as another big step in providing the best value and personalization our customers demand.”

Rita Visser, Director – Global Travel Sourcing & GPO for Oracle, add, “We are excited about this agreement and expect the underlying innovation to simplify the booking process and significantly improve the experience for our travelers.”

This continued focus on innovation demonstrates advancements in Delta’s strategy across all channels, building experiences and capabilities that provide consumers with an elevated shopping experience in their preferred channel of choice.

“Both our new GDS approach with Sabre and their transformative new storefront are two important steps forward in evolving the retail shopping experience for travelers while creating value for all stakeholders across the ecosystem,” said Lobl. “By focusing on value, travelers will benefit from greater choice and visibility to all product offerings while corporations will benefit from their travelers being more comfortable in their preferred booking channel and within their travel policies.”

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) is the U.S. global airline leader in products, services, innovation, reliability and customer experience. Powered by its 80,000 people around the world, Delta continues to invest billions in its people, delivering a world-class travel experience and generating industry-leading shareholder returns. With its constant drive to invest, innovate and expand, Delta today is the world’s No. 1 airline by total revenues.

Delta serves nearly 200 million people every year, taking customers across its industry-leading global network to more than 300 destinations in over 50 countries. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta offers more than 5,000 daily departures and as many as 15,000 affiliated departures including the premier SkyTeam alliance, of which Delta is a founding member.

Delta has been recognized as a Fortune’s top 50 Most Admired Companies in addition to being named the most admired airline for the eighth time in nine years. Additionally, Delta has ranked No.1 in the Business Travel News Annual Airline survey for an unprecedented eight consecutive years and named one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies Worldwide for two consecutive years.  More about Delta can be found on the Delta News Hub as well as delta.com, via @DeltaNewsHub on Twitter and Facebook.com/delta.

About Sabre Corporation

Sabre Corporation (NASDAQ: SABR) is a leading software and technology company that powers the global travel industry, serving a wide range of travel companies including airlines, hoteliers, travel agencies and other suppliers. The company provides retailing, distribution and fulfilment solutions that help its customers operate more efficiently, drive revenue and offer personalized traveler experiences. Through its leading travel marketplace, Sabre connects travel suppliers with buyers from around the globe. Sabre’s technology platform manages more than $260B worth of global travel spend annually. Headquartered in Southlake, Texas, USA, Sabre serves customers in more than 160 countries around the world. For more information visit www.sabre.com.

About CWT

CWT is a Business-to-Business-for-Employees (B2B4E) travel management platform on whom companies and governments rely on to keep their people connected. Anywhere, anytime, anyhow – across six continents – the company provides their clients and their employees with innovative technology and an efficient, safe, and secure travel experience.