Airline Industry Retailing (AIR)

9 Airline Industry Retailing Think Tank2020 New Ideas1 ‒ Customer as the ReferenceIn 2019, the AIR Think Tank project TrulyMe envisaged astandard and a conceptual architecture that allows travelersto carry all travel information including personal data andpreferences on a mobile device. Travelers could sharetheir identity information and travel preferences with anytravel distributor or travel supplier while remaining fully incharge of their personal data. If there was a change to theirtrip, updates and changes were pushed to access in thetraveler’s device.This year, encouraged by the evolution of VerifiableCredentials and Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs) standardsfrom the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and associateddefinition of an internet-scale digital trust architecture by theTrust Over IP Foundation, the team explored the identity andcredentials aspects of the TrulyMe concept and the potentialopportunities that could be pursued.Vision statementIn the future, there should be no need for travelers toremember or write down a passenger name record (PNR) or anorder number to claim a service. Rather, airlines, following thebest practices from the retailing world, should recognize thecustomer first, using the credentials of the customer’s choiceand recognized by the airline. Also, customers should not bespammed by irrelevant recommendations that are based onsecond guessing when the customer can reveal theirpreference as part of the dialogue with an airline and receiverelevant offerings.Customer becomes “the reference” and the key toall interactionsOnce the airline knows who the customer is, then the rightservice can be provided. Furthermore, there is no need for theairline to store all customer data. Information required at eachtouch point can be obtained from the credential carried by thecustomer. The ease of customer recognition also eliminatesthe problem of failing to identify a customer who may havemultiple accounts with the airline and removes any confusionbetween customers bearing the exact same name.This vision, also called “customer as the reference”, promotes a true customer focus for the entirety of a customerjourney all the way from shopping to consumption. Moreover,this focuses on joining up travel and distribution pieces intoa complete end-to-end experience, with an aspiration toeventually deliver a truly seamless customer experience.Current situationCustomers are often asked to share with airlines large volumes of personal information that should not be requiredfor the airline to provide them with a service. Some customerinformation that has previously been provided, e.g., preferences), may be inaccurate or no longer valid. Also, even afterthis data is shared, airlines do not seem to have it on handwhen the data is needed, and customers are often asked toprovide the same information again and sometimes they areasked to provide redundant information.For example: Why would an airline need to store the birthdate of mychild to give them a child fare? Is it not enough to verifythat my child is under the age of 12? Why would an airline need to store my passport numberor its date of issuance? Should it not suffice for them toknow that the information was given to the border controlof the country of my arrival? Why did an airline call my emergency contact whenmy flight was overbooked, and I was not answering thephone? Could they have not sent me a message or askedme for a more appropriate contact to use?Customers want service providers who can meet theirneeds, including offering products and services based ontheir provided preferences. There is no need for customersto keep typing desired itineraries and preferences on onesite after another if they only want to see offers from airlinesdirectly.For retailers, the focus should be to offer relevant productsand services at the right time to the right customer.

10 Airline Industry Retailing Think Tank2020 New Ideas1 ‒ Customer as the ReferenceRetailers want to differentiate products and personalizeservices. However, in the current environment, it is verydifficult for the retailer to identify who from their currentcustomers (whose records are kept in the customer relationship management (CRM) system) has placed an order or whois currently interacting with ground agents at an airport. Infact, data centers are full of disorganized data with doubleor triple accounts for the same customers.Retailers must store, manage and protect large volumes ofpersonal data for their customers such as their birthdates,passport numbers or contact details. A large part of this datais not necessary to conduct business, instead it is used tovalidate store and protect the data from cybercrime, fraudand unauthorized use and ultimately protect the privacyof their customers. This increases the cost and complexityof running the business because of the need to take extraprecautions to safeguard all such data and manage theirlifecycle.With the Covid-19 crisis, governments are even requesting that retailers collect more of the personal data such aspersonal information required for contact tracing or indeedinformation about the health of passengers.In summary, the current challenge for airlines is how to becustomer-centric and unlock the full potential of retailing in aworld where privacy regulations and cybercrime are realitiesand there is little cash available to invest or even continueto operate complex measures protecting data not neededto run the business all while the requirements on datacollection are growing.Vision descriptionIn the not-too-distant-future, customers will rely on apersonal digital concierge equipped with the latest artificialintelligence. An example of this concierge, called DigitalMe,will know customer preferences and plans and will interactwith the systems of various services providers to seamlesslytake the customer throughout the complete travel journey from shopping to travel. Airline and other services providerssystems will simply reference the customer’s DigitalMewhenever they need to interact with the customer.In this vision, a customer creates (or updates) a representation of themself on their DigitalMe based on what their needsare for their travel. This may include passport number, identification card, purchase order of duty-free items collectableat the arrival airport. The customer can decide or pre-selectwhich credential to present at each touch point, as well asthe level of information on the credential they want to share.An airline (including interline connecting airline), hotel orservice provider such as car rental company or local touroperator which the customer has made a booking with, willmaintain a record of the customer in their system. This isreferred to as the “customer digital twin”.The customer digital twin can be imagined as the recordin airline or retailer systems corresponding to the customerand representing the data that is known about the customerand needs to be stored on the retailer side. At each touchpoint, the retailer will use the knowledge stored in thecustomer digital twin to recognize the customer and obtainadvanced information needed to fulfil its service offering.

11 Airline Industry Retailing Think Tank2020 New Ideas1 ‒ Customer as the ReferenceToday, the digital twin will contain the data that airlinesmust store temporarily to do business as well as the datathat the customer wants the airline to store. This may includereferences to multiple credentials used by the customer.In the more technologically advanced future, the processmay be as simple as storing a single reference allowing forsecure and private communication with the customer’sdigital concierge - DigitalMe.Additional service recommendations, like upsellsand cross-sells can be performed through existingcommunication channels such as email, Facebookmessenger or WeChat.RecommendationsThe future model of interaction with the customer isleveraged on a set of emerging concepts.A central position is taken by the model of verifiablecredentials. The customer’s device will be enabled tobecome the central point to store it’s data, from whichdifferent credentials could be shared depending on thesituation.For example:For scenarios where the customer has not yet decidedon the service provider (e.g. brand agnostic) and is opento receiving targeted offerings based on his revealedpreference, our vision assumes that the customer canpublish their preference credential to multiple serviceproviders in an open marketplace. Matching of preferencedemand and supply can be done through a machinematching agent. Preference credentials could be published to the digitalmarketplace to so that the customer can receive targetedoffers The customer could share their full health credentialswith a government which requires to know the detailswhile making sure the airline only sees the fact that theyhold the credential without showing any details. The customer could use a voucher in the form of averifiable credential to collect a gift in an airport shopwithout having to show an identity document.Passenger sidePassport(VC)ID Card(VC)Healthcertificate (VC)DigitalMeFFP Membership(VC)Preferences(self-issued VC)Retailer sidePassporttoken (no PII)ID Cardtoken (no PII)CustomerDigitalTwinPreferencesFFP detailsStored on retailer side if/when requiredOrderRecordNo personal data,just the UID ofDigital Twin

12 Airline Industry Retailing Think Tank2020 New Ideas1 ‒ Customer as the ReferenceIssuance of credentialsPublishing preference credentialsIssuance of credentials such as a health certificate, passportor biometric data follows a trust triangle consisting of thecustomer (holder), the issuer and the verifier who requeststhe information as depicted in the diagram below.For scenarios where the customer wishes to reveal theirtravel preferences at a digital marketplace to multipleservice providers with the intention to improve chancesof receiving relevant product and service offerings,the customer can do so by self-publishing preferencecredentials.Once stored, these credentials can be selectively sharedas subsets directly from a digital wallet by the customervia an appropriate protocol as a way that both the dataand the transmission can be trusted. These can include“traditional” communication protocols such as Near FieldCommunication (NFC), Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), webservices or APIs as well as increasingly popular “shoestring”data sharing methods such as scanning a bar code displayedon a mobile device.An orchestration service that informs the customerof relying parties (stakeholders such as airlines) andthe information they require for timely and consenteddata exchange should follow the Decentralized IdentityCommunication Protocols using DIDs and associatedVerifiable Claims (W3C standards). This allows the customerto selectively disclose credentials in a transaction known asproof request/credential offer to each relying party.GovernanceTechnical TrustHuman TrustTrust over IP Governance StackEcosystem Governance FrameworksLayer 4PublishesGovernanceAuthorityGovernanceFramework Member Directory Auditor Auditor AccreditorTechnologyTrust over IP Technology StackApplication EcosystemsDigital Trust EcosystemCredential Governance FrameworksLayer 3PublishesGovernanceAuthorityGovernanceFramework Credential Registry Authoritative Issuer InsurerProvider Governance FrameworksLayer 2PublishesGovernanceAuthorityGovernanceFramework Hardware Provider Software Provider AgencyData Exchange anceAuthorityGovernanceFramework Transaction Author Transaction Endorser StewardProofHolderVerifierDIDComm Peer to Peer ProtocolPeer DIDSAgent / WalletUtility Governance FrameworksLayer 1Digital Trust EcosystemConnectionAgent / WalletPublic UtilitiesDID MethodUtilityDID MethodUtilityDID MethodUtilitySource: Trust over IP Foundation (2020) and Hyperledger Aries RFC 0289 (2019)

13 Airline Industry Retailing Think Tank2020 New Ideas1 ‒ Customer as the ReferenceUse case examples of DigitalMe1. DigitalMe used as a health certificateThe key characteristics of DigitalMe, as listed below,create a new paradigm where the focus shifts away fromhaving service providers store increasing amounts of information just in case some of the information may be needed,to minimizing the information that is needed to fulfil requirements of a transaction or service delivery. DigitalMe:Currently, as the industry is working towards restarting travelwhile meeting the safety requirements of many countries,the ability to allow the customer to present digital healthcredentials that will be accepted by the destination border isa vital requisite. The handling of a customer’s medical datais highly sensitive and should be processed with the highestlevel of privacy and data security. Moves from recognizing the order to recognizing thecustomer Facilitates the building of a DigitalMe by the customer,where the customer is in control of their data Moves to a set-up where all key stakeholders can verify/authenticate the set of credentials (e.g., civil identity bythe government, frequent flyer by the airline, payment bythe payment provider, etc.) of the customer Pushes the responsibility of authentication of theindividual and their credentials (is this a real passport?Is this passenger allowed to access to destination’scountry? Is this a fake credit card?) away from the airlines Moves from data maximization on the customer to aneed-to-know basis, which minimizes operational costsand risks for data privacy breaches and data life cyclemanagement Opens the opportunity to have a dialogue with thecustomer on their actual needs rather than secondguessing of needs based on a semi-correct profile Enables interactions with value chain partners to transferdata via verifiable claims (e.g., is the customer age above18 vs. show your passport)There are many use cases where one can apply the useof DigitalMe. For illustrative purposes, three different usecases are presented below to describe how DigitalMecan be used as a form of credential (such as a passport orhealth certificate), as an effective way to pass informationto single or multiple service providers for them to fulfil theirservice obligations, and as a means to publish preferencecredentials to a digital marketplace.A customer takes a polymerise chain reaction (PCR) testprior to departure and the medical center performing thetest will issue a digital health certificate which could thenbe presented as a health credential upon arrival at theirdestination and verified by the border quarantine withoutinterference of the airline2. DigitalMe used in passing information to serviceproviders (See the example below on use case/prototype)3. DigitalMe used in publishing preference credentialA customer may have specific requirements and preferencesbut does not know which service provider could meet thoserequirements. The customer therefore publishes a list ofcriteria using their self-declared credential to a digital marketplace without revealing information they do not want toshare. A service provider in the marketplace can meet allthe requirements and makes its offering to the customer.In this scenario, the service provider, by having access toinformation of the customer’s revealed preference, doesnot need to second guess what the customer wants or iswilling to pay. This removes the kind of inefficiencies we seetoday in customers constantly receiving irrelevant servicerecommendations.

14 Airline Industry Retailing Think Tank2020 New Ideas1 ‒ Customer as the ReferenceUse cases/prototypeThis use case involves the customer asserting their identitycredentials when placing the order and asserting paymentcredentials.1. The customer publishes requirements for a journeythey want to take from Tokyo to Groningen and receivesa set of offers from travel retailers that match thosepreferences. The customer has been clear aroundsharing a minimum set of information in terms of thoserequirements and has not shared any details relatedto their identity.2. The customer decides to purchase one of the offersprovided by one of the travel retailers. In this casethe retailer is an airline who can offer their services totransport the customer from Tokyo to Amsterdam andthen transfer them onto a rail supplier who will takethem from Amsterdam to Groningen. When placingthis order, the customer consents to a minimum set ofidentity credentials being shared from the airline retailerto the rail supplier. This full journey is then linked to thecustomer’s DigitalMe.3. The customer then chooses to shop and order car hirefor their arrival in Groningen. A different set of identitycredentials is shared with the car hire company includingan assertion of driving license details. Again, the car hireis linked to the customer’s DigitalMe. The customer alsochooses to share the details of the rail journey with thecar hire company through their DigitalMe. It should benoted that they do not share details of their air travel.In this scenario the air and rail suppliers both know about theother parts of the single order placed by the customer. Thismeans that if there is a flight delay then the rail supplier mayhave the ability to react to this and rebook the customer’sonward rail journey. Similarly, the car hire supplier will beable to react to the change in rail order and rearrange thecar collection time. However, the car hire supplier has noidea that the real reason for needing to make this changewas the original flight delay – that information has notbeen shared with them.BenefitsThe introduction of the customer as the reference offers thefollowing key benefits:1. The first and foremost benefit is the customer-centricity.For airlines, this means the ability to personalize andreduce the inefficiency of second guessing the customer’s needs. For customers, the benefits lie in the removalof the hassle to constantly share personal data and theopportunity to get more relevant options.2. A customer-centric approach also allows airlines toproactively manage change during disruptions. Thecustomer as the reference means that the airline alwayshas the customer contact details necessary to reach outand engage directly with the customer to identify suitablealternative options as quickly and efficiently as possible.3. It enables a true customer focus for the entirety of acustomer journey all the way from shopping to travel,joining up travel and distribution pieces into anend-to-end experience.4. Another benefit for airlines is the removal of costs,complexity and risks associated with managing personaldata of customers and, with it, increased trust by customers because the risk of personal data exposure isminimized.5. An opportunity for customers and airlines alike to unlockfurther benefits. For example, the same principles can beused by customers to share health data with governmentauthorities.Next stepsBuilding on the above described ideas, the team aims towork towards having a proof of concept with interestedparties using one or two relatively simple but value-addinguse case(s) in the area of issuing and presenting healthcredentials, which currently could help facilitate and speedup the reopening of international borders. Working on implementing a proof of concept will also enable the team to identify in detail the components needed for each governanceand technology layer such as communication protocolsand network environments.

15 Airline Industry Retailing Think Tank2020 New Ideas2 ‒ Emerging Products and Serv

preference as part of the dialogue with an airline and receive relevant offerings. Customer becomes “the reference” and the key to all interactions . Once the airline knows who the customer is, then the right service can be provided. Furthermore, there is no need for the