Travelport is restructuring how it operates in Southern Africa, shifting to an operator-led model that will see customer-facing operations handled by a local partner, while Travelport retains a smaller, non-customer-facing presence in South Africa.
In a statement issued on January 29, Travelport announced that SevenC Computing and Real Time Travel Connections (RTTC) would operate the business in future, trading as Travelport Southern Africa. The two companies have been Travelport’s technology partners in the region since 2012.
Under the new model, the appointed operator will manage all customer-facing activities, including sales, service, and product and solutions delivery.
Responding to queries from Travel News, Travelport confirmed that it would retain 14 staff in South Africa, supporting airline relationships, global consulting and other internal functions. Customer-facing staff currently employed by Travelport South Africa will transition to the operator, which will also expand its customer-facing team.
Travelport said the move would not affect agency contracts or commercial arrangements.
“The Operator transition is seamless for customers, without changes to contracts, commercial terms or pricing structures,” said Bryan Rufener, Head of Account Management Southern Africa, Agency Sales. He confirmed that all subscribers had been formally notified of the operator appointment.
Going forward, agency agreements will be held by Travelport Southern Africa, the appointed operator, rather than by Travelport directly.
According to Travelport, the shift forms part of a broader global review of its go-to market strategy. “This conversion was undertaken as part of Travelport’s go-to market review for optimal channel presence globally,” said Rufener. “With the increasing speed of change and opportunity in our industry, we believe now is the optimal time to launch our strategic Operator partnership to grow Travelport’s offering to customers in Southern Africa.”
Travelport said the new structure was intended to combine its global technology platform with local market expertise, enabling a more agile and locally responsive service model.
The operator has also announced plans to establish a ‘Travel Service and Technology Hub of Excellence’ in Johannesburg, positioning the partnership as a centre for local support and innovation.
