Travelport to Make Cash Payments to American in Lawsuit Settlement

Travelport will make cash payments over a period of years to American Airlines under the settlement agreement they reached last month.

The agreement, which brings an end to American’s antitrust lawsuit against Travelport in a federal court in Texas and a lawsuit filed by Travelport against American in a Circuit Court in Chicago, was submitted for approval to American’s bankruptcy court.

AA & Orbitz
Meanwhile, American reached a settlement agreement with Orbitz Worldwide, thereby dotting the last “i” in its lawsuits over distribution.

Orbitz was the last remaining defendant in American’s antitrust lawsuit in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas.

Dollar amounts unknown
American’s agreement with Travelport calls for the first payment to be made within five business days after its approval. Additional payments will be made within 10 days of the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh anniversaries of the effective date.

The amounts of the payments were not disclosed.

AA & Sabre
American’s settlement with Sabre last October also called for two unspecified but “substantial” cash payments to be made by Sabre.

American’s fourth-quarter results included “a $280 million benefit from settlement of a commercial dispute,” widely believed to be the first Sabre payment.

Sabre’s second payment to American will be made “on or before the first anniversary of the effective date.”

AA & Travelport
The American-Travelport agreement calls for both parties to bear their own expenses, costs and attorneys’ fees.

As previously reported, Travelport and American have agreed “to implement new technology pursuant to which Travelport will access all American content through American’s Direct Connect.”

Both the Galileo and Worldspan platforms will connect with American via the Direct Connect.

AA & Orbitz
The documents submitted to the bankruptcy court include American’s settlement with Orbitz.

That agreement did not specifically address whether Orbitz would connect with American via Direct Connect – the issue that originally spawned all the litigation. But the Travelport agreement states that the Direct Connect technology will enable American “to reach all of Travelport’s subscribers, including through Orbitz.”

It also “will reduce the booking fees from the levels [American] has been paying Travelport since expiration of the Preferred Fares Amendment and Worldspan Content Amendment” in January.