Delta joint venture conditional DOT approval
Nov 30, 2020, 7:53 pm
#46
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Delta, BC
Posts: 1,646
That's great. (Really.) They might have a JV with ATI by, maybe, 2024 then?
None of the things that benefit business travellers actually require a JV, though. A joint venture gives them the ability to coordinate on pricing, route planning and capacities. It is 100% not required to improve the customer experience for WS pax on DL and vice versa.
Countless airlines around the world give each other's customers reciprocal benefits -- like premium check-in, priority boarding, access to better Y cabin seating, an ability to upgrade. Most do that without any joint venture or anti-trust immunity in place -- because those are in no way required in order to offer reciprocal customer benefits. All that is required is that the two airlines agree on a plan and make the required IT links.
None of the things that benefit business travellers actually require a JV, though. A joint venture gives them the ability to coordinate on pricing, route planning and capacities. It is 100% not required to improve the customer experience for WS pax on DL and vice versa.
Countless airlines around the world give each other's customers reciprocal benefits -- like premium check-in, priority boarding, access to better Y cabin seating, an ability to upgrade. Most do that without any joint venture or anti-trust immunity in place -- because those are in no way required in order to offer reciprocal customer benefits. All that is required is that the two airlines agree on a plan and make the required IT links.
Dec 1, 2020, 1:06 am
#47
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: The World
Programs: WS Platinum, Marriott Titanium, DL Gold, UA Silver
Posts: 1,478
WestJet’s cost to give a Delta Diamond member access to premium check-in or priority boarding is ... zero. The same for Delta’s costs for giving benefits to WS passengers.
The only significant cost would be come from granting lounge access to each other’s customers — which I doubt would be on the table since Delta’s access rules are so different than WestJet’s, and since WestJet only has a single lounge.
Without a JV in place, keep the code-shares so that WestJet doesn’t forfeit their revenue to Delta.
The revenue upside comes from keeping higher share of wallet from your own customers... like of those (like me) who more-than-occasionally fly on UA or sometimes AA since the Delta experience as a WS Platinum is so poor.
Regardless ... you say they’d still need a business case to proceed? WestJet said they were going to do this in 2017, and have been repeating it ever since. Methinks they’ve made the business case already.
Dec 1, 2020, 12:31 pm
#48
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: YVR
Programs: WS Nothing, AC Something, AS Gold. Too big for 737Max washrooms
Posts: 893
Or there never was a business case and it was just marketing..... I mean, it is not unheard of for people in marketing to do or promise things that are ultimately not aligned with the good of the business.