Try to remember the last time you traveled.
How many times did you have to show some form of identification? More importantly, how much time did all that take?
My guess is a lot, but it shouldn’t. With the technologies available today, we shouldn’t have to waste so much time having to prove our identity every step of the way.
But, there are so many travelers right now, you might say. And you are right. In fact, so much so the UN World Tourism Organization predicts that almost two billion people will travel internationally over the next 10 years. What’s more – IATA predicts more than 7.8 billion travelers in 2035.
So, how would this non-existing infrastructure keep up with the expected growth rate?
I say, base it on something everyone already has with them – mobile phones.
In 2017, there were more than 5 billion people connected to mobile services. By 2025, the number of unique mobile subscribers is expected to hit 71% of the world’s population.
More importantly for this specific case, a 2016 Expedia survey showed that consumers now consider their mobile phone to be their most essential travel companion – ranking it ahead of their toothbrush, deodorant, and even their driver’s license.
All that in mind, it’s logical that this is the direction to head into. A mobile ID can provide a frictionless travel experience.
However, let’s look into what that actually means.
Frictionless travel means an all-encompassing ecosystem
Frictionless travel has been envisioned by many as an all-encompassing ecosystem across the full experience – from booking flights, being identified at the airport to hotels, booking restaurants and car rentals, all while respecting user privacy and upholding security.
Now, I’m sure you’re aware that all of these have already been digitized. You can book your flights online, check-in online, book hotel rooms, book taxis, etc.
However, the problem arises from their fragmentation. For each service you use, you have to fill in your details over and over again, increasingly risking the security of your information and wasting some more time.
On the other hand, imagine the possibility of frictionless travel. You book your ticket, accommodation, and transportation on your smartphone. After arriving at the airport, you skip the check-in, you skip the boarding passes – all you need to do is wirelessly confirm your identity using your smartphone. When you arrive at the hotel, you can skip the check-in again, and instead obtain a digital key to your room after authenticating. This would be the pattern across all touchpoints.
This makes you think, doesn’t it? What if we could leverage Mobile ID and already existing technologies for providing a complete frictionless travel experience?
Not only would this benefit the travelers, but the businesses involved as well. You know I like numbers, so here are some.
Did you know that according to Mitek, only 36% of Millennials, who make up the majority of travelers today, are satisfied with the hospitality industry providing a mobile experience in terms of convenience, functionality, and security? This opens up a great opportunity for improving user experience and increasing guest loyalty!
Moreover, it works in favor of the businesses sending out the travelers, as far as business trips are concerned. A Sabre and GBTA report find that 80% of travelers believe their travel experience affects how they do their job. Providing frictionless travel would then entail a loyal and satisfied working force.
As such, this ecosystem is a must, especially considering that the technologies to facilitate all this already exist.
Choosing the right technologies for travelers’ Mobile ID management
We can all agree that implementing a system like this would be very complex, but what most don’t realize is that the technology is already here. It’s just a matter of choosing the right one for the case at hand.
Let’s take biometrics as an example. You most likely have them on your phone already. In fact, IATA predicts that by 2023 an incredible 85% of mobile phones will have biometric sensors on them.
Moreover, facial recognition is already used in 17 airports with many entries into the USA. NCA’s facial recognition can quickly identify a traveler and compare their identity with numerous security watch lists all while checking them into their flight.
However, while somewhat convenient, these methods perpetuate the problem with the ownership of data, which airlines today are claiming. This shouldn’t be the case. In 2019, users’ privacy has to be respected and their data left to themselves.
There’s hope, though. IATA finds that 70% of airlines and airports will have made major investments in identity management platforms by 2023. The only question is whether they’ll head in the right direction?
So, what’s that?
We’re talking about a solution, so let’s get back to the original idea of frictionless travel.
What is needed is a tool that enables travelers to share this and this specific data with a certain travel actor – to decide for themselves what to share with whom.
This frictionless travel system should then link that traveler’s identity to every touchpoint in their itinerary so that they could be instantly identified and authenticated at each point using the communication capabilities of their mobile phone.
Now, we’re talking mobile phones so relying on the already existing complex infrastructure of mobile operators seems purely logical. As they would say, think smart, not hard.
Their coverage, the number of unique mobile users around the world and their existing technological capabilities all point towards this direction as well.
However, it’s important to differentiate the gravity of international travel compared to signing in on an online forum. The security protocols for this use case must be impeccable.
As far as I’m concerned, an ongoing multi-factor authentication system would be the one to go with – as long as it doesn’t overcomplicate this process and defeat the original purpose.
What the choice would boil down to is how effective different authentication solutions are, how effective they would be together as part of a larger authentication system, and how respectful they are of the three keywords – user experience, privacy, and security.
IPification fits in perfectly here. It relies on the complex mobile operator infrastructure to create a unique mobile ID that includes various data from the mobile operator, while still detecting device and SIM card changes.
The user authenticates their identity with the press of the button when their data is compared against their record, a process completed seamlessly in the background.
Best of all? It’s already here and can simplify the travel process today.
