Press Releases

Munich, December 18, 2006 – The world’s most active and discerning air travelers just got bumped up to a higher class of online travel experience with the launch of the new Star Alliance network portal, staralliance.com.  The Star Alliance network – the world’s leading global airline alliance composed of 18 Member Carriers with a combined 16,000 daily flights to 841 destinations in 157 countries – collaborated with Sapient (NASDAQ: SAPE) to design an online travel experience that responds to the changing needs of the high value international traveler.  

Currently, Web travelers make up 79% of the U.S. travel population.1 In 2005, in Western Europe, the number of online bookers has soared by 33%.2

Staralliance.com now provides easier access to the most requested features, such as “Flight Search,” “Flight Status,” “Baggage Tracing,” and “Visa & Health” information on a global alliance basis.  Additionally, the new design of the website better reflects the seamless innovation of the Star Alliance brand, providing customers more control over their international travel while maintaining the cultural flair of each Member Carrier.

“The re-launched staralliance.com will provide customers of the Star Alliance network with new services to help plan their travel across our global airline alliance, and it firmly asserts our lead in the e-services environment,” said Philip Saunders, VP Commercial, Star Alliance.

The Star Alliance network provides global, alliance-relevant products & services from a single online location.  Frequent travelers have the ability to search for multi-leg trips across member airlines, and can check flight status across their complete itinerary.   Other new features, such as fast access to flight schedules and timetables, baggage tracing and benefits information, as well as notifications via email or SMS, put high value international travelers in the fast lane of online travel management. 

Sapient supported the Star Alliance network project to develop and launch the new site in less than 16 weeks.  This fast-paced redesign holds long term benefits, including key site features and increases ease-of-use, as well as providing the base for a plan for an e-environment able to host all relevant alliance products & services.

“Star Alliance selected Sapient as its development partner due our common vision and shared commitment to innovation.  The new website is testament to the energy of both our teams and clearly reflects these values,” commented Aman Khan, VP Information Technology, Star Alliance, on the successful launch of the new site.

Stefan Hirsch, Director of Business Consulting at Sapient added: “We are excited to help the Star Alliance network soar to even greater heights as the leading global airline alliance by adding value to its Member Carriers’ travelers.  We are also establishing a platform for any potential future technology initiatives to keep the Star Alliance network ahead of its competitors.”

About Sapient
Sapient helps clients innovate their businesses in the areas of marketing, business operations, and technology.  Leveraging a unique approach, breakthrough thinking, and disciplined execution, Sapient leads its industry in delivering the right business results on time and on budget.  Sapient works with clients that are driven to make a difference, including BP, Essent Energie, Harrah’s Entertainment, Hilton International, Janus, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Sony Electronics, the U.S. Marine Corps, and Verizon.
Founded in 1990, Sapient is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and operates across North America, Europe, and India.  More information about Sapient can be found at www.sapient.com.

Sapient is a registered service mark of Sapient Corporation.

About Sapient’s Experience Marketing Practice
Sapient’s marketing services business -- Experience Marketing (EM) --  integrates creative marketing concepts with technology tools and platforms that drive new customer acquisition, build loyalty and increase meaningful dialogue between brands and their customers.  The practice operates like a new breed of digital agency, providing a full range of services including interactive experiences, online and offline media strategy, real-time campaign optimization, sophisticated analytics and database management, and Web site design and delivery. 
http://www.sapient.com/clients/Client+Success.htm.

About Star Alliance
The Star Alliance network was established in 1997 as the first truly global airline alliance to offer customers worldwide reach and a smooth travel experience. Star Alliance was voted Best Airline Alliance by Business Traveller Magazine in 2003 and 2006 and by Skytrax in 2003 and 2005. The members are Air Canada, Air New Zealand, ANA, Asiana Airlines, Austrian, bmi, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, Spanair, SWISS, TAP Portugal, THAI, United, US Airways and VARIG Brazilian Airlines. Regional member carriers Adria Airways (Slovenia), Blue1 (Finland) and Croatia Airlines enhance the global network. Air China, Shanghai Airlines and Turkish Airlines have all been accepted as future members and are expected to join Star Alliance during the course of the next one to two years. Overall, the Star Alliance network offers more than 16,000 daily flights to 841 destinations in 157 countries.

1. The Mainstreaming Of The Web Traveler.  An Excerpt From "The State Of Consumers And Technology: Benchmark 2006", Forrester Research, Inc., September 12, 2006

2. European Net Travel Has Only Just Taken Off, Forrester Research, Inc., February 17, 2006