The best AA vs. Kayak report so far + my two cents

Is AA the shark and Kayak the kayak? Or is it vice versa?

As American Airlines and Kayak.com continue to fight (now with lawsuits a-flying!) and the news and blog reports continue to stack up, I guess I've got to say something on this. I don't know why I've been so lazy. Maybe it's because these tiffs usually work out quickly or maybe I'm too into watching that dreamy Michael Phelps swim for big gold on the plasma telly. But, thanks to this blurb from the Hartford Courant - which was the best article yet on the topic and shares a lot of my thinking - I thought I'd point to it and add a few of my thoughts.

• Short term, Kayak is a big winner. I bet you a Euro that price-aggregator Kayak's site traffic has never been higher. The old adage "there's no such thing as bad PR" certainly holds true. But, Kayak hasn't had a lot of bad PR on this. Most reports rave about their search capabilities and point the finger at AA. This is invaluable.
  
• Big kudos to Kayak for the use of their blog. While it's mostly senseless fluff (unlike this blog!) the official statements were good stuff. But, no kudos for the lack of comment on the AA lawsuit. I know the policy is not to comment on that stuff, but even just saying that may be better than saying nothing. It's a tough call...
• You ain't nuthin' in the travel biz until you've been sued. Trust me, it's true. The business of travel is one sue-happy space...if this is Kayak's first lawsuit (and I highly doubt that) congrats. You're officially in the big leagues now!
  
• Double digit capacity cuts will make an airline bold. Sure, AA is losing traffic from the loss of Kayak. But does it really matter if your capacity is significantly cut going into the fall? As there are fewer seats to fill, each individual channel matters less and makes an airline more apt to implement some bold changes. If the data shows ANY indication that they are surviving the loss of this channel, it's a sad state for Kayak. It's definitely not the best time to be in a pissing match with a crazy airline...meaning:
  
• Long term, AA could be the winner here. Kayak already doesn't offer Southwest. Losing American - the nation's #1 and #2 airlines - is a SERIOUS blow to the value of meta search and Kayak's comprehensive marketing position. It's an even worse blow to Kayak as other online travel sites have AA listed and Kayak does not... ouch!
• Bet your bottom dinar other airlines are watching this bar fight. Airlines are lemmings. And I suspect (just suspectin' here) a few others out there also aren't big fans of the big-K. Meaning, there is a significant risk for a pile-on effect as this fight continues.
  
• Pity poor Orbitz. While nobody talks about it, Orbitz loses absolutely in this fight as Orbitz and their red-haired stepsister Cheaptickets were the "other channels" that Kayak sends airline traffic to. Sure customers who fly AA a lot will think to go to AA.com and check out flights even if they start a search on Kayak. Customers who fly AA a lot are less likely to think to go to Orbitz to look for those same flights. Orbitz desperately needs Kayak's referral traffic and unless things revert to as they were (unlikely!), Orbitz loses absolutely in this fight. As it all drags on I'll be very interested in seeing Orbitz's financial results in search for any bookings hit...
  

Finally, did Kayak's "we are your consumer advocate" tune sound just a bit hollow to you? It sure did to me. Their comments on the original TechCrunch article stated how they were being your consumer advocate as evil AA wanted Kayak to suppress other travel site results and valiant Kayak told them no. If Kayak was your true consumer advocate wouldn't they serve up results from all your favorite booking options (like Travelocity, Expedia or Priceline)? That's what a consumer advocate would do...show you all your options. Right?

The answer is of course not. Just follow the money. I highly suspect (just suspectin' here) that to get the deal with - and to get paid by - one of the OTAs, Kayak had to exclude the rest of them in their search results. Meaning, Kayak is their own best advocate - not yours.

I further suspect (again, just suspectin' here!) that Kayak's arrangement with Orbitz probably states that Orbitz search results must be served for all airlines Orbitz represents - or Orbitz doesn't pay (or doesn't pay Kayak as much). This means Kayak's in a bit of a pickle...and they (rightfully) pulled the "we are your friend" position out of the PR hat.

Finally, I still like Kayak and I still start my searches there. But I am starting to search an OTA (Expedia, Orbitz, Travelocity) as well to get a true multiple-airline search. Then I usually flip over to the airline.com and buy the ticket. It's a pain in the a$$, and I may change my habits as this drags on, but I still like their search better than Farecast, Mobissimo and the other metas.

My bottom line in booking air is that I'm not paying no stinkin' service fee (but I should mention that on Priceline you don't pay a stinkin' service fee - for the OTAs, Priceline is the best of the lot).

That's my two cents...