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16 January 2006 EnglandNet revolutionises the tourism arseAccording to Hansard, EnglandNet (conceived and implemented by Netdecisions and VisitBritain) has, thus far, cost £7.2m. EnglandNet aims to "revolutionise" British tourism by enabling all accommodation providers, big and small, to be booked through those sites which sign up to its aggregator service. (Here's the 2004 overview.) This will enable a whole host of people to make mon£y fa$t, not least eviivo, the stupidly-named Netdecisions company behind the technology... which, mercifully, is now said to have progressed beyond its initial Visual Basic incarnation. Each booking will be salami-sliced by a bewildering array of 'consolidators', 'DMOs', 'DMS Suppliers', 'NTOs', and 'Tourism Product Providers'. I'd guess, therefore, that the people set to make the most money are those whose input is required by every single booking - the technology providers. But despite all the money thrown at it, EnglandNet's business model has been repeatedly "refocused". Its technology has missed deadline after deadline. It would continue to soak up money if money were forthcoming. Now, finally, it has crept out, restricted to a selection of properties in south-eastern England only.
Give these guys a fucking medal. CommentsInteresting to see the Net Decisions model of 'transforming and enhancing' is succeeding beyond their wildest dreams, of err transforming and enhancing the stakeholders of Net Decisions bank accounts. Meanwhile taxpayer pounds are continuing to be squandared. Wonder how much in the way of government funds allocated to Visit Britain has been sucked into the ND black hole. Posted by Aaron on 2.2.06 17:48 Hmmm... a Freedom of Information Act request might tell us... evil smile Posted by Richard on 3.2.06 16:10 | |
