Virgin Nigeria, the flag carrier of Nigeria, has become the latest airline to opt for the CRIS frequent flyer and customer relationship management solution from Mercator, the IT division of Dubai-based Emirates Group.

Skywards Consultancy Services worked alongside Mercator during the design and implementation phases, revolutionising Virgin Nigeria's frequent flyer programme, 'eagleflier', bringing in a broad range of innovative, appealing and user-friendly new features. Virgin Nigeria's more regular travellers will be transformed into their most loyal customers.

CRIS' powerful customer relationship functionality also means that Virgin Nigeria management will benefit from a continual stream of quality customer information, helping them to better understand their passengers and create services to match their needs.

Yemi Osindero, Chief Operating Officer, Virgin Nigeria, said: "We're passionate about our customers and we always try our best to give them a quality travel experience whenever they fly with us. We make it our top priority to recognise and appreciate the support of these most loyal customers."

"Mercator's CRIS will give us everything we need to make 'eagleflier' a truly unique loyalty reward programme. Our customers will enjoy a wide range of benefits, never seen before in this region, and we look forward to building a strong Virgin Nigeria customer family."

Mercator will host CRIS for Virgin Nigeria at its state-of-the-art twin data centre facilities in Dubai.

Patrick Naef, Head of Mercator and Divisional Senior Vice President IT Emirates Group, said: "Virgin Nigeria is already a customer for our outsourced RAPID revenue accounting solution, and this latest deal for CRIS further cements our relationship. We look forward to working hand in hand with our friends in Nigeria on future projects and to contributing to the airline's continued success."

Virgin Nigeria is 49% owned by Virgin Atlantic Airways, with the majority 51% being held by 20 Nigerian institutional investors. Its hub is in Lagos, with services running from Lagos to London and to destinations within Nigeria and West Africa. The network will rapidly expand to cover Europe, the US, Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

Mercator's smart and cost effective solutions in passenger experience, air cargo management, finance and revenue accounting are used by more than 100 airlines and airports all around the world. Customers for its CRIS frequent flyer and customer relationship management solutions include Air Astana, Emirates Airline, Jet Airways, Philippine Airlines and SriLankan Airlines.

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Mercator, the IT division of Dubai-based Emirates Group and Microsoft recently announced they will set up an Innovation Lab in Dubai to develop new products and services for the travel industry using Microsoft's cutting-edge technologies and tapping on Emirates' expertise and experience in developing IT solutions for the aviation and travel industry. Both companies will invest in the project.

Microsoft will work with Mercator experts in the "Dubai Innovation Lab", which will be amongst the first of its kind for both companies in this field. The lab will enable Mercator to incubate and develop creative new solutions for airline and travel customers around the world, including Emirates Airline. Mercator's IT services and solutions are today used by over 100 airlines globally.

HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline & Group, and Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates witnessed the signature of the memorandum of understanding outlining the project during a meeting in Dubai.

HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline & Group, and Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates

Patrick Naef, Divisional Senior Vice President, Head of Mercator, said: "Innovation has been a cornerstone of Mercator's success across our portfolio. By working with technology leader Microsoft to develop cutting-edge products and services, we are looking to reinforce our commanding position in the travel industry and continue to pioneer new ways to serve our customers better."

The lab will take Microsoft's latest technologies and apply them to the development of new ways of doing things across all parts of the travel and aviation industry - from reservations and check-in to cargo and ground handling systems.

"Emirates Group has established a powerful reputation as a dynamic, forward-thinking company, and this agreement will strengthen this reputation further," said Charbel Fakhoury, General Manager, Microsoft Gulf. "By adopting these next-generation technologies, the airline is setting an important precedent. The Gulf region has a massive potential to contribute to the global development of technology-driven innovations, and Mercator is leading the way."

He added, "Through the establishment of our Innovation Lab, Microsoft and Mercator will demonstrate how technology can play a defining role in enhancing business operations and customer experiences."

Through the innovation lab, Mercator and Microsoft will explore implementation of technologies based on Microsoft software and hardware as well as online services such as the Windows Live platform.

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