Need to connect all banks with mobile banking platforms to boost tourism: Report

With technological advancements driving tourism industry growth, the government needs to connect all banks with mobile banking platforms in order to facilitate conformity with the new wave of innovative travel, a report by KPMG and FICCI said today.

Such a move would ease transactions for both local and foreign tourists and the government should also explore the feasibility of deploying encrypted Short Message Service (SMS) based funds transfer on a mobile application, it added.

"There is a need for improvement in policies around mobile banking to facilitate faster payment services," the report said.

Policies to facilitate faster payment services are essential to enhance the options for customer registration for mobile banking services, enable wider access to mobile banking services in multiple languages for non-smartphone users and encourage innovative mobile-based payment solutions, it added.

 

The FICCI-KPMG report, 'Expedition 3.0: Travel and Hospitality Gone Digital', also said key advancements in the travel space revolve around five themes -- artificial intelligence, big data, mobile applications, social media and virtual/augmented reality.

KPMG in India, Partner and Head - Transport, Leisure and Sports, Jaideep Ghosh said: "Digital revolution in the travel space is on. Brands are embracing technology to transform themselves into experience platforms while automating operations."

Corporate and consumer travel boundaries are already blurred. Incumbents are adapting swiftly to the emerging bouquet of travel start-ups. Creative digital business models will continue to reshape the future of travel, he added.

In similar vein, FICCI, Tourism Consultant Rahul Chakravarty said: "The rampant penetration of smartphone has transformed the travel consumption pattern of the end user. The knowledge paper highlights all these with pointers to the future of travel in India."

Technology is rapidly changing consumer behaviour as technology adoption is rising at a significant pace, Yatra Online CEO and Co-Founder and Chairman, FICCI Travel Technology Committee, Dhruv Shringi said.

Voice is becoming a mainstream tool for travellers enabling them to locate a couple of hotels to meet their specific requirements. The future, therefore, lies in apps supported by voice, he added.