Originally Posted by
CommittedLurker
Flights to India are being cut due to a dispute with TA's. SQ recently withdrew all commissions to TA's in India. This has resulted in a boycott of SQ bookings by many TA's in India, causing a big drop in load factors.
Unlike some other countries, most int'l travel in India is still booked through TA's.
Most travel in asia are still booked through travel agents too. Doesn't matter if TAs boycott SQ. If a client wants to travel SQ, the agent can't say no, we're not selling SQ. And with a choice of either Air India or SQ from India, I believe the choice is obvious.
SQ may cut the commission across the board officially, but I know SQ may still cut deals with their largest consolidators as they do in other parts of the world. Like in the USA where commissions in theory do not exist anymore, SQ has some special commission structures in place for some preferred travel agencies. And SQ isn't alone in this. Other airlines will dangle some commission sweetener if they want a slice of the pie too.