Although the number of Internet users booking travel arrangements online has increased, Internet travel service providers are having difficulty getting browsers to buy, a study by research firm, International Communications Research, Media, PA, revealed. Results from the 1998 PhoCusWright Travel E-Commerce Survey were released at the annual online travel industry conference, PhoCusWright Live98.
The report revealed that 57 percent of “wired travelers” have looked but not booked travel arrangements online, and that 70 percent of those have later bought tickets from another source such as a travel agent. The report showed that 80 percent of “wired travelers” looked at Internet travel sites, and 58 percent of those checked prices. For non-buyers, 82 percent said they worried about credit card security and 79 percent said personal privacy was a concern. For the study ICR, conducted a random telephone survey of 500 “wired travelers” who have traveled in the past year.
