The takeover threat is looming large and the predators this time around are coming from the virtual world. The traditional brick and mortar Delhi travel agency business has undergone a steady decline over the last few years. This deceleration has gained pace with the traveling demographics witnessing a change in the aftermath of the infotech revolution. The younger generation is much more tech savvy and comfortable with the web than the previous one and prefer to book tickets online.

The official web portals of various airlines and other travel portals are fast gaining popularity due to the convenience they afford to travelers. According to a research report by Prabhudas Liladhar, airline websites sold 27% of the tickets this year, while online travel agents sold 15% of the tickets. The report also notes that the conventional travel agent’s share in the e-ticketing market is expected to slide from 40% in 2007 to 32% in 2008.

Most of this rise comes from the low cost carriers, which are mostly used by the younger generation. The recent boom in the aviation sector is being driven by these low cost carriers, which depend mostly on their online ticket booking systems to drive sales. The airline companies are going that crucial extra mile by partnering with technology companies to upgrade their websites and activity is moving from the airline offices to various websites.

The change has not been that dramatic in the case of full service carriers, but the trends are more than obvious. There are several travel agents who see some silver lining in the global trends. They believe that the reliability of the travel operators would wean travelers away from online ticketing system, as is happening the world over.