Matta urges members to use Internet

The Star, October 4, 2000

The Malaysian Association of Tours and Travel Agents (Matta) plans to encourage its 1,400 members to use the Internet in their daily operations.

As a step in that direction, Matta will be holding its 1st e-business conference and exhibition 2000 in Kuala Lumpur.

"The ones who are using the internet are mostly involved in surfing for information while the number of Matta members who actually conduct transaction online is a lot less," its president Tunku Iskandar Tunku Abdullah told a press conference in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Tunku Iskandar said there was a need to get more members to embrace the internet as at present less than 25% used the internet in their daily chores.

He said that with the expected increase in internet users, travel agents should utilise its many advantages as it could help save costs that went into transportation and brochures.

According to Tunku Iskandar, in a borderless world, travel agents will be faced with more competition from other countries, and the best way to stay competitive is via the internet.

"E-commerce has changed the face of business and is generating new business models and new corporate strategies. The travel business is very much exposed to this environment and events are moving fast to threaten the livelihood of travel agents," he said. "To be successful, travel agents need to connect quickly with customers, suppliers and others they do business with."

The main sponsor and event manager for the Matta e-business conference is eOneNet.com, which launched the ebusiness ownership campaign 2000 last month, aimed at encouraging Malaysian businesses to get online.

eOneNet.com president and chief executive officer Fione Tan said the conference would be useful to all travel agents as unlike other internet conferences, it would be tailored for travel agents.

"The conference will not only benefit the big players but also those in the small and medium-sized industries (SMI) category. A travel agent can actually have a chance to walk out of the conference and have his new website up and running within a few days," she said.

eOneNet.com will sponsor all travel agents to get online by offering free web design and hosting services package for RM300.