Delta fares dropped from FareCompare site

FareCompare.com, a large airfare comparison shopping site, is no longer listing fare and flight information for Delta Air Lines as a standoff heats up among the airlines and online travel sites.

Delta's fares disappeared from FareCompare.com last month, CEO Rick Seaney confirmed. He said Delta requested that Orbitz.com stop supplying fare information to "downstream affiliates," sites such as FareCompare, that obtain fare information from Orbitz rather than through Delta directly.

Delta recently withdrew its fares from a dozen online sites including CheapoAir.com, OneTravel.com and Bookit.com, but unlike these sites, FareCompare (and others like it, called "meta" search sites) doesn't sell airline tickets. Rather, they cull fare and flight information, display all the choices, and then provide links to airlines and other sites for booking.

"We are indeed being more selective about our online partners," said Delta spokesman Trebor Banstetter.

Orbitz landed at the center of a fray between the online sites and the airlines when American Airlines removed its flight listings from Orbitz after the companies could not agree on a new contract.

Expedia then dropped American flights, and Delta withdrew its fares from CheapoAir.com, OneTravel.com and Bookit.com.

Seaney, whose site relies mainly on licensing agreements to obtain data for more than 500 airlines worldwide, called the situation "a short-term blip."

"Ultimately we expect to have Delta back. We're in the process of getting a variety of technologies up so we can go directly to Delta, but it will take us a few weeks to get it up and running."

If airlines begin to drop fare data from the meta search sites, consumers could face huge hurdles in comparison shopping for the best fares and flight times.

Each site configures its technology and accesses fares slightly differently through special partnerships. Kayak.com, for example, receives fares from ITA Software; Amadeus, a global distribution system; and some airlines directly, including American and Delta.

The U.S. Justice Department is expected to decide soon on whether to let Google Inc. buy ITA for $700 million. Kayak and other online travel agencies are opposing the plans, saying they wouldn't stand a chance of competing, a scenario that could lead to fewer choices and higher fares.

Seaney developed his own technology for sorting through millions of airline prices while working on a project for Hotels.com, which was later acquired by Bellevue-based Expedia.

He moved on to co-found FareCompare in 2006. Considered an expert on airline data, he authors a weekly column about the airline industry for ABCNews.com.

Carol Pucci: cpucci@seattletimes.com