ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the interface between tourism and information technology (IT). It introduces the concept of information technology, one of the major drivers of change within the tourism sector, and describes its impact on the industry. Technology has revolutionized the pace, scale and nature of business processes in the tourism industry, changing the parameters and scale of business operation as well as the structure of the industry. IT aids the identification, selection, booking and payment as well as the after-sale evaluation of tourism goods. Smart tourism is being fuelled by smart devices and technologies connecting tourism actors and enabling them to exchange resources as well as by big data representing the ‘oil’ of the new digital economy. Information and Communication Technologies include a continuously increasing number of tools enabling the capture, processing, storage, dissemination and use of information, such as computers, tablets, the Internet, smartphones, management information systems, Radio Frequency Identification, Bluetooth and wireless networks.
