WorldMate Goes Big in Japan: Strategic Alliance with JTB-CWT Introduces Unprecedented Mobile Capabilities to Japan's $65 Billion Business Travel Market

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- WorldMate, Inc., a Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) company and maker of the popular app favored by more than 11 million business travelers, and JTB-CWT Business Travel Solutions, a joint venture between Japan's largest travel agency and CWT, have teamed up to launch Trip To Go and B-Schedule, first-of-its-kind travel apps in Japan. The apps are built on WorldMate's platform and are fully localized for the Japanese market. Business travelers will enjoy a world-class experience booking hotels and renting cars directly within the apps.

The two apps launching today benefit from WorldMate's 15 years of mobile expertise and ability to deliver amazing mobile user experiences:

• Trip To Go –tailored to unmanaged business travelers who do not have a corporate travel agency.  The app enables hotel, car rental, and insurance booking and also facilitates mobile check-in to dozens of airlines.  
• B-Schedule – serves existing JTB-CWT corporate travel customers. In addition to all of the Trip To Go functionality, B-Schedule provides itinerary synchronization for all travelers who book their trips with JTB-CWT.   

"We chose WorldMate above all other companies, both domestic and foreign, to bring mobile capabilities to our current customers and to expand our reach into the unmanaged travel market in Japan," said Tsutomu Takenaka, CEO, JTB-CWT. "By leveraging WorldMate's technology platform, the project went from contract signing to launch in less than seven months."

"WorldMate's alliance with the largest travel agency in Japan showcases our ability to quickly use our technology to serve new markets around the globe," said Amir Kirshenboim, WorldMate CEO. "We're proud to work with JTB-CWT to deliver unprecedented mobile services to business travelers in Japan."

According to Haruo Ushiba, director and senior analyst, Phocuswright Japan, the potential for adding value for unmanaged travel in Japan is huge, as no one is specifically addressing this need today.

"Previously these unmanaged business travelers had no travel agency to make their arrangements," said Ushiba. "With the introduction of these new apps from JTB-CWT powered by WorldMate, Japan's unmanaged business travelers can now easily make their own arrangements and work seamlessly with Japanese sources, like airlines, hotels, car rental companies and more."

WorldMate was recently named Most Innovative Established Company at the Phocuswright Innovation Summit for its Hotel Price Alerts and Counter Offers, recognized as the most innovative and potentially disruptive travel technology of 2014.

About WorldMate
WorldMate, Inc., a Carlson Wagonlit Travel company, serves over 11 million business travelers by managing their itineraries, guiding them through every aspect of their trips and saving them time, money and headaches along the way.  Travelers simply forward their confirmation emails to [email protected], and WorldMate takes care of the rest – flight alerts, the booking of last-minute hotels and car rentals, weather forecasts, currencies conversions and much more. For more information, visit www.worldmate.com.

About CWT 
CWT is a global leader specialized in managing business travel and meetings and events. CWT serves companies, government institutions and non-governmental organizations of all sizes in more than 150 countries and territories. By leveraging both the expertise of its people and leading-edge technology, CWT helps clients derive the greatest value from their travel program in terms of savings, service, security and sustainability. The company is also committed to providing best-in-class service and assistance to travelers. In 2013, sales volume for wholly owned operations and joint ventures totaled US$26.9 billion. As part of its commitment to responsible business, CWT is a signatory of the United Nations Global Compact Ten Principles. For more information about CWT, please visit our global website at www.carlsonwagonlit.com. Follow us on Twitter @CarlsonWagonlit.

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SOURCE WorldMate, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.worldmate.com