United Airline and Orbitz Suing Young Entrepreneur Over Its System Discrepancy
United Airline and Orbitz have decided to take time out of their busy schedule so that they can sue 22-year-old Aktarer Zaman for $75,000. According to UPI.com, Zaman founded the website Skiplagged. This website helps passengers find cheaper flights by finding tickets where the actual destination of the traveler is a layover. The strategy is called “Hidden City.”
Why #UnitedAirlines and #Orbitz are suing a 22-year-old tech whiz http://t.co/W0Ch2dbkwx @Skiplagged pic.twitter.com/9zrp4TO5v5
— CNNMoney (@CNNMoney) December 30, 2014
“In its simplest form, a passenger purchases a ticket from city A to city B to city C but does not travel beyond city B,” Orbitz, an online booking site, and United Airlines said. Although not participating in the case, American Airlines said the practice is like “switching price tags to obtain a lower price” and suggested raising fares if it continues.
While agents in the travel industry know, this is a common practice, the actual website that allows you to schedule flights raised a few airline corporation eyebrows. Typically airlines offer cheaper fares for some destinations that are not central hubs. Most Flights get routed through popular destinations. But if a lot of people take advantage of of this loophole, it could hurt the airlines, which is why they want to shut him down.
Although United Airlines and Orbits think it’s a good idea to sue Zaman, The publicity generated from CNN, UPI, and other media outlets will impact the public outlook on the corporations. Instead of looking to resolve their system discrepancies, the companies instead will spend more than the requested $75,000 from Zaman.
“Skiplagged’s sole purpose has always been to help you become savvy travelers,” Zaman said in a statement on a fundraising website. “Unfortunately, we have been doing too good of a job, so United Airlines and Orbitz recently teamed up with a lawsuit to get in the way.”
Leave your comments below if you think United Airline and Orbitz should sue Aktarer Zaman or if you believe they should hire a new PR and Tech firm to resolve its issues?