Will this make travel agents valuable again? They would essentially have an arbitrage position by buying bulk tickets early and selling them to customers at a d

Will this make travel agents valuable again? They would essentially have an arbitrage position by buying bulk tickets early and selling them to customers at a discount compared to the airline price. The airlines win because it reduces risk/uncertainty for them, while the customers win because they pay a lower price. (Unfortunately, the travel agents also soak up nearly all the risk, exposing them to large losses in the event that all travel goes down. All it would take is one event like 9/11 to depress tickets sales and bankrupt the agency.) > Experts say such technology (dynamic pricing) is most likely to be used to offer discounts to customers with loyalty status and to generate bundled fare offerings that fit the customer's profile. They don't need AI to do that--the airlines could do this already if you log in to their site. But they don't change pricing based on loyalty; instead, they often give "perks" that are not very valuable. And because of the inflation in airline miles, it is harder and harder to get those perks in the first place -- to get a sky lounge membership through Delta requires 47,000 miles, or the equivalent of 10 roundtrip flights from LA to NYC. So, it seems disingenuous to claim that airlines will give preferential treatment to loyal customers. If anything, it would do the opposite: customers who are loyal (and trying to get the next "perk") are more willing to pay a higher price, not less willing!