The conversation around NDC has shifted. It’s no longer about what’s coming next – it’s about what’s already reshaping the way airlines distribute content and how corporate travel programs source and manage air travel.
Airlines are increasingly layering NDC on top of the legacy channels, expanding the range of fares, bundles, and ancillaries they offer. As a result, content is evolving at speed, and travel managers are operating in a far more dynamic and complex buying environment.
At ALTOUR, we’ve been deep in this evolution for years. With automatic NDC enablement already embedded across our platform, we’ve seen firsthand how NDC can enhance visibility, unlock richer content, and create value when implemented thoughtfully.
But one thing hasn’t changed – We measure every innovation by its impact on the traveler experience.
NDC is simply another vehicle to deliver what matters – access to the right fare, at the right time, in the right channel, backed by program integrity, global service consistency, and duty of care.
Whether the content is coming through NDC or traditional channels, our priority is ensuring clients receive the most competitive, complete, and accurate options available.
NDC continues to evolve, and so does the corporate travel ecosystem around it. What stays constant is our commitment to guiding enterprise programs through this shift with clarity, transparency, and a traveler first approach.
What is NDC content?
New Distribution Capability (NDC) is a standard developed by IATA to modernize the way airlines sell their products. It replaces the legacy GDS model (EDIFACT) that’s been used for decades. Instead of static fare filings, NDC uses modern APIs to deliver richer, more flexible offers directly from airlines.
In practice, that means fares, seat options, baggage, upgrades, and extras can be packaged dynamically and tailored to the traveler. It’s about turning air content into retail, giving more control for airlines and, potentially, more choice and transparency for travelers and travel buyers.
How the market has changed
One of the clearest lessons so far is that NDC hasn’t replaced traditional distribution – and it hasn’t simply been layered on top of it either. The real change is more complex: airline content now lives across multiple channels, and no single source provides a complete picture on its own.
Airlines are increasingly using NDC to publish differentiated offers, richer bundles, and price points that may not appear in legacy displays. At the same time, they continue to maintain content through the GDS and in some cases, direct channels. The result is an omnichannel ecosystem where the most competitive fare could sit in any one of several channels. This is why ALTOUR’s strategy is not to treat NDC as a standalone feed – it’s to aggregate content across all available channels so clients always see the full accurate landscape of options.
The State of NDC in 2025
More than 60% of airlines now support some form of NDC, but the level of maturity varies widely. Some carriers are retailing aggressively through NDC, others are experimenting with select markets, fare classes, or ancillaries.
IATA’s Airline Retailing Maturity Index shows that adoption will continue to build as airlines transition toward a full Offer and Order model – where booking, fulfillment, and servicing are unified under a single order ID. Most experts anticipate that transition to unfold over the next 4-5 years.
For Corporate Programs, this means operating in omnichannel environment – a mix of GDS content, NDC, direct connects and aggregators depending on airline readiness and platform capability. The challenge is not NDC versus legacy – it’s accessing, normalizing, and comparing all channels holistically.
Keeping Travelers and Clients First
As the ecosystem has evolved so has our role – but our philosophy has remained consistent. Every distribution decision we make is evaluated through two questions:
- Does this improve the traveler experience?
- Does this protect program performance and integrity?
By integrating NDC fares into our client programs, ALTOUR ensures clients always see the lowest logical fare across channels, no matter where the fare originates.
This means that:
• Omnichannel content aggregation is what matters -We don’t prioritize channels – we prioritize completeness. If the best fare is an NDC fare, you’ll see it. If better visibility or value comes from GDS content, you’ll see that too. Our goal is a unified view, not a channel-by-channel navigation.
• Service Parity regardless of channel the content comes from – Travelers shouldn’t notice or care whether a fare is an NDC or EDIFACT GDS fare. Changeability, refunds, reissues and servicing should feel identical. That’s why we invest in the tools, AI capabilities, and agent training required to ensure consistency across channels.
The real experience so far
Travelers are already seeing the impact of NDC in subtle but meaningful ways as airlines are offering fare bundles that include added value such as WiFi, Priority services, and seat enhancements. They’re also testing more differentiated price points and service options that may appear differently depending on where a traveler shops.
For many travelers this shows up most clearly when browsing airline websites directly, where richer retailing is already the norm. But the real challenge sits with travel programs because travelers want to compare options across carriers, fare types, etc. This means that content fragmentation may live in any one of several channels, and fare attributes can vary across them.
This is where the role of the TMC becomes essential. Our job is to normalize and present the content in a way that makes this complexity invisible to the traveler – to ensure they always see the right fare, at the right time, with the right support behind it.
Lessons Learned
Across the market there is a shared recognition that NDC has shifted to standard practice. At ALTOUR, our focus hasn’t been on adopting new distribution for novelty sake. It has been on ensuring that every shift in airline retailing delivers real value for clients and their travelers.
We believe in progress with purpose. This means engaging closely with our technology partners and airline suppliers to ensure the content we deliver is reliable, complete, bookable, and serviceable – no exceptions. NDC is not a separate channel, it’s one of several sources in an omnichannel ecosystem that must work together.
The Opportunity Ahead
NDC has made airline retailing more dynamic and data driven. For clients this introduces powerful advantages:
• Access to richer and more personalized content – so travelers will want to book within the managed travel program
• Greater visibility into ancillary value
• Better leverage in supplier negotiations
• More accurate benchmarking and spend optimization
But it also increases the complexity of content management. That’s why ALTOUR takes a deliberate, controlled and client centered approach.
We help clients pilot and adopt NDC content in practical ways -measuring cost impacts, traveler sentiment, and service outcomes. At the same time we build the integrations needed to ensure content from all channels remains accessible and comparable as the market continues to mature.
Our aim is simple: give clients confidence that no matter where content originates, the traveler is supported, program data stays intact, and policy goals remain protected.
Questions to Start Asking
As you review your airline strategy or prepare for your 2026 budgets, these are the questions that matter:
- Which of your preferred airlines are NDC enabled today and to what extent?
- Are you potentially missing exclusive content or competitive bundles by relying solely on legacy displays?
- Can your booking platform enable NDC and legacy content bookings with equal reliability?
- How will all content -NDC, GDS, direct and aggregated – be tracked, reported, reconciled, and analyzed?
These conversations are essential to building a forward looking travel program.
Preparing your program for NDC
If your travel program has not yet adopted NDC content, start with your highest value airline routes. Identify where NDC can add value, and test it in a controlled environment.
We recommend beginning with a focused pilot – one airline, one region or one traveler segment to benchmark cost differences, traveler experience, and servicing performance.
Once your technology stack and servicing workflows are aligned, you can expand with confidence. That is exactly how ALTOUR guides clients: proactively, thoughtfully and strategically.
Looking Forward
NDC is already reshaping airline retailing and how travel programs buy. But while distribution evolves, the fundamentals of exceptional travel management remain constant.
At ALTOUR:
- We will continue to put travelers first – before, during and after every trip
- We will continue to give clients transparent access to all available content so they never miss the best fare or the best value.
- We will continue advocating for an ecosystem that balances innovation with reliability – because that is what builds trust long-term.
NDC may have opened the door to new distribution strategies, but our focus remains the same: delivering a seamless experience, smarter program insights, and complete confidence that ALTOUR is presenting all of your options across every channel.
Next Steps
If you’re ready to strengthen your corporate travel program with smarter tools, value driven support, and over 30 years of global business travel expertise, we’re here to help.
Book a consultation with ALTOUR’s enterprise travel team and start planning with confidence.
