Although 92% of enterprises in the tourism sector are micro-enterprises, it is distinguished by the development of ICT in terms of sales.
The latest European Commission report, covering research results from the beginning of 2005, also includes a characterization and assessment of the state of ICT advancement in the tourism sector. It covered ten economic sectors in seven European countries: France, Spain, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, and Poland. The subjects of the research were only entities possessing computers.
At this point, it should be mentioned that tourism is a very broad concept: from means of transport, restaurants, and accommodation places to cultural and sports activities.
The European research covered entities according to the NACE Rev. 1.1 classification, marked as H55 and I63. The tourism sector is treated as particularly susceptible to the use of ICT tools. It also shows the fastest development, and its growth dynamics are higher than in the economy as a whole.
In 2005, in the EU, the tourism sector numbered over 1.4 million enterprises, employing approx. 8.1 million workers. High turnover growth in tourism also applies to new and associated countries of the Union, especially Estonia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Romania, the Czech Republic, and Slovenia. However, despite the sector’s susceptibility to the use of ICT, there is also a factor hindering this process. It is the size structure of enterprises, where approx. 92% were micro-enterprises, 7.3% – small, 0.6% medium, and 0.1% large.
A bit of history
Modern information and communication technologies appeared in the tourism sector quite some time ago. It is generally accepted that their development occurred in three waves, namely when:
On one hand, customers can communicate directly with agencies in this way and satisfy their increasingly changing needs regarding their services, and on the other – this very volatility of demand and the increasing segmentation of the tourism market require agencies to have direct contact with customers.