Google Flights is an online flight booking search service that facilitates the purchase of airline tickets through third-party suppliers. It was launched by Google in 2011 following a buyout. It is now part of Google Travel.[1]
 | |
 Google Flights screenshot | |
| Owner | |
|---|---|
| URL | www |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Registration | Not required |
| Launched | September 13, 2011 |
History
editIn April 2011, the United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division approved Google's $700 million purchase of ITA Software.[2] On September 13, 2011, Google launched Google Flights, which used algorithms gained from this purchase.[3]
Features
editAn innovation of Google Flights is that it allows open-ended searches based on criteria other than the destination; for example, a user may search for flights within a range of times and a budget and be offered various destination choices.[4] Alternatively, a user can select a destination, and Google Flights will calculate every price for each day of the next 12 months, visualized in a graph or table. This allows users to easily spot the cheapest date to fly to the destination.
Google Flights also enables its users to calculate the climate impact of their flight, but in July 2022, this tool changed the way of calculating the climate impact of flights. All the global warming impacts of flying except the CO2 emission were excluded from the calculation, halving the calculated climate impact of each flight. This move faced a backlash from environmental activists and the scientific community.[5]
Response
editThe service was immediately compared to competitors such as Expedia, Orbitz, Kayak.com, and Bing.[6]
Shortly after the site launched, Expedia testified to the Senate Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee that Google failed to keep a promise to rank Google Flight listings below the listings of competitors in a Google search.[7]
International availability
edit- Albania[8]
- Armenia[8]
- Australia[9]
- Azerbaijan[8]
- Belarus[8]
- Belgium[10]
- Bosnia and Herzegovina[8]
- Brazil[11]
- Bulgaria[8]
- Canada[12]
- Chile
- Croatia[8]
- Cyprus[8]
- Czech Republic[8]
- Estonia[8]
- Finland[8]
- France[13]
- Georgia[8]
- Germany[14]
- Greece[8]
- Greenland[8]
- Honduras[15]
- Hong Kong[8]
- Hungary[8]
- Iceland[8]
- India[16]
- Indonesia[17]
- Ireland[18]
- Israel[19]
- Italy[20]
- Latvia[8]
- Lithuania[8]
- Luxembourg[21]
- Macedonia[8]
- Malaysia[22]
- Mauritius
- Mexico[23]
- Moldova[8]
- Montenegro[8]
- Netherlands[24]
- New Zealand[9]
- Nigeria
- Norway[25]
- Oman
- Peru
- Poland[26]
- Portugal[27]
- Romania[8]
- Russia[28]
- Serbia[8]
- South Africa[29]
- Singapore[30]
- Slovakia[8]
- Slovenia[8]
- Spain[31]
- Sweden[32]
- Taiwan[8]
- Turkey[33]
- Switzerland[34]
- Ukraine[8]
- United Kingdom[35]
- United States[36]
References
edit- ^ Li, Abner (2019-05-14). "New Google Travel site replacing Google Trips app". 9to5Google. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
- ^ Ryan Singel (8 April 2011). "Feds Clear Google to Buy ITA Travel Search Company, Conditions Apply". Wired. Retrieved 13 September 2011.
- ^ Ryan Singel (13 September 2011). "Google Upgrades Flight Search to the Jet Age". Wired. Retrieved 13 September 2011.
- ^ Julianne Pepitone (13 September 2011). "Google launches Flight Search – with a feature rivals lack". CNN. Retrieved 13 September 2011.
- ^ "Google change reduces airline emissions calculations". BBC News. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
- ^ Rebeccas Greenfield (13 September 2011). "Google Travel: Not a Kayak Killer, Yet". The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company. Retrieved January 18, 2022.
- ^ Forden, Sara (20 September 2011). "Google's Flight Search Breaks Promise on ITA Deal, Expedia Says". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab "Google Trips, Flights, and Destinations add new languages and countries". Google. 2017-09-06. Retrieved 2017-11-23.
- ^ a b "#GoogleFlights has landed down under! Visit google.com.au/flights or google.c..." Retrieved 2017-06-14.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.be. Retrieved 2016-08-06.
- ^ "Google Voos". flights.google.com.br. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.ca. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Recherche de vols". flights.google.fr. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.de. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights". Google. Retrieved 2023-08-05.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.co.in. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights lands in Indonesia". Google. 2016-11-07. Retrieved 2016-11-08.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.ie. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "jerusalem post". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2018-08-16.
- ^ "Google Ricerca voli". flights.google.it. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.lu. Retrieved 2017-07-30.
- ^ "Google Flights lands in Malaysia". Google Travel. Retrieved 2016-03-23.
- ^ "Google Flights now makes it easier to find the best flights in Mexico right i..." Retrieved 2017-03-24.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.nl. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.no. Retrieved 2018-08-15.
- ^ "Loty Google". flights.google.pl. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Voos". google.pt/flights/. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
- ^ "Google Авиабилеты". flights.google.ru. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights ZA". za.google.com/travel/flights. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
- ^ "Google Flights available in Singapore from Dec 17".
- ^ "Google Flights". Google. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.se. Retrieved 2016-11-14.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.com.tr. Retrieved 2020-11-17.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.ch. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights". flights.google.co.uk. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
- ^ "Google Flights". Google. Retrieved 2015-12-13.