iPhone for Travel - Apples Patents reveal much

Apple reveals its travel-booking, travel- shopping plans in patents

We need to understand this, Apple is really trying to Patent ideas for mobile apps!. There is not much new in technology here, but if they get away with it iPhone developers might well get kicked out of the iPhone travel apps market for good. I have to assume that it will not pass, but these patent applications, one for travel-bookings and one for hotel services reveal a not so pleasing aspect of the Apple that we all love.

These travel-app patents show that Apple is planning to connect into some back end systems for hotels and airlines. Its not clear if this connection is to hotels directly and airlines directly. That is possible, but it will be much quicker to work with Intermediaries like the GDS.

Apple's travel-bookingsapplication, describes making airline bookings and accessing location destination guides to make hotel bookings and add activities.

Their Hotels Services patient application also offers hotel booking but is essentially designed for personal services to the guest in the hotel and post-trip promotion/questionnaires/info.

This looks like it must be targeted directly to the hotel. If so will Apple become a travel intermediary supplying services to the hotel owners and tourism operators directly?.Or perhaps will on location Apple Travel Specialists, Travel Vendors or agents. That does not bode well for application developers with direct tourism shopping, travel bookings and hotel marketing applications like our very own http://smartphonetravelapps.com

Will Apple shake up the travel industry and put developers out of business?

I think not - first It's just a patent application and maybe it will not get approved, maybe Apple is just thinking in the future with no real strategic plan. But what is clear from this patent application is that Apple is considering competing with independent iPhone developers. That s not good for developers. Less competition is not good for consumers or suppliers.

Hotel Marketing is far bigger than the iPhone, besides iPhone is not universal and not alone. It has Android on its heels, winning customers away with a growing number of travel apps like Caribbean Travel Shopping.

What hotels and tourism operators need is cross platform marketing. Developers like AXSES can forge ahead with targeted smartphone travel marketing that coordinate direct marketing, global distribution, social media travel marketing, facebook, google travel shopping and internet bookings:

Be aware developers!

(Credit: USPTO/Screenshot by Erica Ogg/CNET)

(Unwired Images:

http://www.unwiredview.com/2010/07/30/apple-starts-patenting-mobile-app-ideas/)

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