Memoire Online - E-Tourism in Europe The E-CRM and ITCs adoption issues: how to retain customers?

Date de création :	01.06.2005
Date de dépôt :	28.06.2005
Niveau :	BAC + 5

1.1 Economic importance of the sector 1.2 Weight of the SMEs in the sector 1.3 Online Travel sales in Europe 1.4 Internet users profile

6.1 Focus on the SM Es: the tricky adoption of ICTs and E-business solutions 6.2 The perceived barriers to the adoption of e-CRM solutions

INTRODUCTION:

E-tourism offers the potential to make information and booking facilities available to large numbers of consumers at relatively low cost. It enables the tourism sector to make large-scale savings on the production and distribution of print and other traditional activities such as call centers and information centers. It also provides a tool for communication and relationship development with the end-consumers as well as tourism suppliers and market intermediaries.

Tourism can be viewed as very different from most other sectors of e-commerce as the consumer goes and collects the product at the point of production which is the destination. Consequently, the tourism avoids the need to deliver products around the world.

The factors described above result in the taking of a larger and larger share of e-commerce globally. As a result, the Internet can be considered as the last revolution in the distribution of tourism information and sales. Internet is even becoming the primary channel for business to business communication. It offers the suppliers the potential to by-pass intermediaries in the value chain and thus increases their revenue base. Consequently, new business models must be developed by travel and tourism companies in order to manage their relationships with intermediaries and final customers. It is obvious that the application of e-business methods in Customer Relations Management (e-CRM) provides such an opportunity.

E-CRM can be defined as the translation of existing techniques for finding customers in the electronic environment. It provides products and services customized to the needs of the customers. It helps to retain customers loyalty and attend the needs for information and support in the use of the tourism products. Many eCRM techniques are already employed by businesses using non-electronic methods. Intelligent agent technologies, the linking of call centers to web sites, and the use of data warehousing techniques to perform detailed analysis of customer needs are among the new opportunities offered by the Internet and other advanced ICTs.

E-CRM and ICTs adoption are key to the e-tourism growth. Considering the fierce market competition it is a competitive advantage and it must be seen as a new business model which enhance a customer centric culture within destination organization.

The aim of this paper is to deal with tthe issues related to the E-CRM and ICTs adoption in the e-tourism industry. In order to achieve that goal, we are going to examine the benefits of e-CRM, its potential and the barriers identified.

1. General context

1.1 Economic importance of the sector:

Tourism is one of the most important sectors in the European Union. Five EU countries were among the 10 leading tourist destinations in the world in 2000, and in 1999 the EU accounted for 43% of arrivals and 40% of receipts in non-domestic world tourism. In addition, Tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors in the European economy.

1.2 Weight of the SMEs in the sector:

The tourist industry is heterogeneous and fragmented. It involves many different players, both private and public. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play a very important role in European tourism, with over 99% of firms employing fewer than 250 individuals. In 1997, tourism SMEs represented 7.4% of total SMEs in Europe. 6.5% of the total turnover of European SMEs is generated by tourism SM Es.

1.3 Online travel sales in Europe:

E-business has a major impact on the tourism sector, not only by redefining the organizational structure and working procedures of the individual enterprise, but also by changing the relationship with partner organizations. Online travel sales increased by as much as 36% from 2003 to 2004 and reached 17.0 billion euros in the European market in 2004- or 7.1% of the market (up from EUR 12.5 bn. or 5.3% in 2003).

A further increase of about 23% during 2005to about EUR 21.0 billion may be expected (8.6% of the market). The European online travel market could reach EUR 24.9 billion. or 10.0% of the market by 2006. The UK accounted for 36% of the European online travel market in 2004, with Germany in second place at 22%, a little up from 2003. The ten new EU member countries have been included in the European online travel market and contributed a little under 2% to the total in 2004, after growing quickly during 2004. The direct sellers accounted for 64% of online sales in the European market in 2004, marginally less than in 2003.

1 European Information Technology Observatory The Evolution in European E-conomy, EITO, May 2003

In 2004 the breakdown of the market by type of service was as follows (with 2003 in brackets): Airtravel: 57.4% (57.1%); Hotels 15.8% (15.0%); Package tours 14.4% (15.7%); Rail 8.7% (8.3%); Rental cars 1.9% (1.8%); Other services: 1.9% (2.1%). Concentration in the European online travel market has increased, following several acquisitions. E-business has a major impact on each part of the value chain, from service providers to intermediaries.

1.4 Internet users profile

E-Customers are becoming more and more accustomed to the use of new technologies. They are also able to use a more dynamic tool to contact suppliers directly, to choose travel destinations, to obtain on-line travel information, to compare prices, and to proceed to online booking and purchasing. Consumers can interact online in specially designated areas created by the electronic intermediaries to exchange views and travel experiences and to publicise travel reviews.

According to the studies conducted by eTForecasts in 2001, Internet users tend to be wealthy, well educated and interested in independent travel. The Internet user relates very well to some or all of the target markets of many destinations. However, we must consider that the growing number of Internet users and the increase in the use of new access channels (e.g television and mobile devices) the user profile will change , broaden and become less up market. It is already the case in the United States as a very high proportion of proportion of people traveling internationally is internet users. It seems that it is going to be the same for the other major markets in the next two or three years.

According to Jupiter Research6², the number of internet users in Europe will reach 212 million by 2008, up from 142 million users in 2002. Jupiter Research believes that at the end of 2008, the disparities in Internet household penetration rates between the more technologically sophisticated Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland) and the rest of Europe will have narrowed compared with 2002. The average penetration rates for the three key regions (i.e., Nordic Europe, Northern Europe, and Southern Europe) will vary by just 15% in 2008 compared with a variation of 25% in 2002. (Jupiter Direct, 10/2003).

2 Jupiter Research Report, The European Online Population Through 2008, October 2003

2/ The travel industry specific features and the ICTs impact

2.1 The travel industry value chain

Five main types of actors intervene in the traditional value chain of the travel and tourism industry:

- The suppliers including airlines, transportation companies and accommodation service providers

- The Global Distribution Systems (GDS) which are used by other actors to manage prices and inventories in real-time. Amadeus, Galileo, Worldspan and Sabre are among the most used Global Distribution Systems.

- The Travel agents who are playing the role of intermediaries. They distribute travel products from
carriers, receivers and tour operators to the final customer.

2.2 Providing the overal travel experience

Tourism most specific feature is its various components which are creating and delivering the overall "travel experience.' Along with transportation, it includes such things as accommodations, food and beverage services, shops, entertainment, aesthetics and special events. It is rare for one business to provide the variety of activities or facilities tourists need or desire. This adds to the difficulty of maintaining and controlling the quality of the experience. To overcome this hurdle, tourism related businesses, agencies, and organizations need to work together to package and promote tourism opportunities in their areas and align their efforts to assure consistency in product quality.

Tourism is usually defined as services for people travelling to and staying outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure or for business purposes. It covers four main activities:

In spite of the fact that the tourism sector covers a wide range of services, it corresponds to a range of NACE categories described in the table below.

2 .3 The impact of the information and communication technologies

Considering the so-called globalisation of our society and the knowledge-based information structure of the economy, information and communication technologies are tightly linked with tourism. In fact, since the implementations of the first computerized reservation systems (early 1960's), the tourism sector is one of the most extensive "user" of the information and communication technologies (ICT). The gathering, processing and communication of information is key to the sector.

The wide range of possibilities of action and approach made available by the ICTs provoked a great change in the attitudes and behaviour of both consumers and producers. Sophisticated software applications are available, they are called: CRM (customer relationship management), SCM (supply chain management), ERP (enterprise resource planning), and KM (knowledge management). Nowadays, it obvious that any advanced and experienced organization cannot survive, in our dynamic economy, without making a good use of these techniques.

CRM seems to be the most important software application to be used in the tourism sector. In combination with business intelligence software, CRM software help firms to use more efficiently the information gathered about their customers. The Analysis of transaction data, website visits, and destination information usage allow to reveal behavioural patterns of tourist. Consequently, the tourism managers can better meet their customers and thus customize the offerings and services. This way it is possible to increase the profitability of loyal returning tourists.

2. .4 Trends and Challenges of the European e-tourism market

We can state that the demand for tourism products and services is growing steadily. Travel sites such as the well known Last-minute.com or Expedia.com are still going strong. In addition to these sites, new sites are created on a constant basis. As a result, the UK, Germany and France are expecting further growth in online travel bookings through 2007.

The proportion of processes integration is slightly higher in larger enterprises integrating their purchasing systems with customers. Consequently, we can say that it is going to lead to the "standardisation" of the tourism industry as the products and services supplied are quite similar, every time the e-customer encounters the organisation. In addition, we must consider that the tourism industry must ensure the delivery of timely and consistent goods. There must be a short time between the production of the tourist product and the point of sale.

From an e-marketing and e-sales perspective, the tourism industry can be considered as one of the leading industries. Tourism seems to have explored all the new possibilities provided by the Internet in order to improve customer relations. Even individual enterprises are able to directly contact customers avoiding intermediaries. This direct contact with the market led the firms to react instantly to the market changes. However the online selling percentage is still growing.

Considering that the tourism industry is mainly dominated by micro and small enterprises, it impacts the adoption of ICT and thus e-business. It seems that the setting up of IT systems and the allocation of resources for e-business is costly and difficult as small businesses do not own the right competencies. In fact, the ICT field had been largely dominated by the larger enterprises. We can assert that the difficulties encountered by the smallest firms are due to the high level of expenditures. In addition, the absence of systems available for micro and small scale companies is another key reason. Small sized firms can only benefit from a limited number of functions provided in these systems. It is true that most of the IT solutions require the "critical mass" factor in order to become profitable to the e-customers and thus the firm.

Consequently, it can be rational for small businesses not to use these IT solutions as they did not reach the critical level of users they can benefit from. That is the main reason why small businesses are still falling behind their larger counterparts. In order to resolve this problem, relationships and networking can be an effective solution. However, SMEs must meet the standards and levels of their partners or networks in order to maximize their e-businesses strategies.

3/ The Customer relationship management philosophy: how to retain

customers

3.1 Customer relationship management definition and the Nykamp consulting group model

Customer relationship management (CRM) is one of the key aspect of e-business and e-marketing. It is a higly and cost efficient approach. We can even call it a philosophy which is based on the knowledge and the relationship with customer. The knowledge and relationship with the customer is key to maximising the sales opportunities and especially repeat purchase. CRM impacts the structure of the organisation itself as it helps to refocus and restructure it, it can be applied to the end-consumers or intermediaries.

The marketing literature provides many definitions of CRM. We decided to use the Nykamp Consulting Group definition which is as follow: "optimising all contacts with customers or potential customers". The Nykamp Consulting Group has also provided a very clear and helpful conceptual model for the CRM cycle which appears below. The model can be read from the lower right hand quadrant, beginning with the understanding of customer needs and following by the differentiation between customers in terms of their needs, potential value and the type of the most effective relationship. Then the cycle moves through product, channel development and the customisation for different segments. The cycle ends with the customer interaction, the delivery of increased value to them, customer acquisition and retention.

CRM implies the building of in depth information about the customers and the potential ones through contacts. The information about customers usually includes their socio-demographic profile, interest and activities, their past and possible future requirements. The information collected help to provide knowledgeable and efficient servicing enquiries. Thanks to the information, it is possible to target the best prospect customers with products specifically appropriate to their needs. It helps to establish the basis for a "lifetime relationship" with the customer, and maintain the relationship even if transactions are not involved.

In order to provide the best relationship overtime, the staff facing the customer must be enabled to use the same customer database. For the tourism industry, the aim of CRM is to maintain the relationship with the customer before, during and after the visit, through the Web, e-mail, call centre, kiosk or the Tourist information Office.

It is essential to understand that CRM is not a module that can be simply added to an organisation's activities. A customer centric culture must be implemented within the destination organisation , otherwise the organisations are not going to maximize the use of software and e-solutions. That is the very reason why some organisations considered that their CRM investments were not efficient it as they did not build their CRM as a

method of operations focusing more on the customer rather than the product. It is obvious that in order to maximize CRM solutions the staff must be trained and highly motivated.

The staff must be ready to fulfil the needs of specific customer segments. Their targets should be in terms of customer acquisition, retention, value and profitability, as well as satisfaction. These objectives will require excellent monitoring systems, together with creative and focused market research. As described above, the Internet provides good means for instant research on customer requirements through e-mail or surveys linked to Website usage. It is possible to get knowledge of the customer requirements, interests, activities, attitudes and satisfaction. In addition, traditional market researches must be conducted from time to time.

Remaining competitive in the tourism industry means that the interaction with customers is the key of success. That is the reason why the tourism destinations have started to implement CRM programmes and techniques in order to match the consumer needs and to customise the offer. For instance the EITO³ (2001) has found that booking holidays at the last minute accounts for 10% of all holiday bookings.

3.2 Internet features and its e-CRM benefits

As an information-intensive industry, e-marketing seems to be the ideal partner of the sector growth. Considering that the Internet is the most effective and efficient means in information exchange worldwide, it facilitates the promotion and distribution of tourist products. It even enables tourism destinations and enterprises to compete on a level playing field. The generation, gathering, processing, application and communication of information is essential in the daily operations of the industry which holds together the different producers within the travel industry (e.g airlines, tour operators, travel agencies, attractions, car rental, cruise lines).

In addition, the balancing between the tourism supply and demand is a key issue as tourism products are perishable and tourist demand often erratic. As a result, tourism became one of the first industries to apply IT and conduct electronic commerce from the early 1960s with computerised reservation systems (CRs) and global distribution System (GDSs).

A web based GDS is able to increase the speed of information transmission. It can improve the quality of information delivery, reduce the cost to the user who do not need special connections, and has the potential to interact with e-customers worldwide. That is the reason why most of the GDS companies launched web-based systems which are transforming the tourism distribution features. For instance, Amadeus launched Amadeus Pro Web in January 2000. The Amadeus Pro Web provides a browser-based reservation tool which allows travel agents to serve customers worldwide without a dedicated communications line. This system greatly reduce the cost.

In order to explain why Internet is such a valuable tool for the tourism sector, we are going to deal with its most interesting features from a the e-customer relationship management perspective.

3.2.1 Interactivity : the proactive e-consumer

Interactivity must be considered as one of the most distinctive and important feature of Internet. In fact, Internet allows to respond to user inputs, whereas communication media do not allow this interactivity.

Websites offer the opportunity to get some feedback in response to the actions performed by the e-customers. This can be considered as a two-way dialogue form which is an essential component of relationship marketing. It also helps to build customer loyalty.

From the customer point of view, e-customers can find the relevant product informations and conduct transactions. From the companies point of view, it allows to clarify their clients needs and to inform them of the launching of new products.

In opposition to traditional communication channels such as newspapers or television, the e-customer becomes an active participant. As a matter of fact, the e-customer can choose and process the information he needs. We can say that this interactivity corresponds to the «desire marketing» approach as the e-customer gets only what he really wants and needs.

As an interactive media, Internet provides competitive intelligence, partnering and co-operation with other firms which often intends to improve the supply-channel and distribution-channel relationships.

With regard to the consumer to consumer communication, we must examine the marketing impact of the virtual communities. This virtual communities have implications on segmentation and customer service. The virtual communities allow exchange of information or experiences among customers. Consequently, companies are enabled to get a better understanding of its consumers behaviour.

3.2.3 Flexibility : getting a wide and updated range of information

Obviously, a Website is a more flexible marketing medium if we consider the traditional mass medias. A web page can be used as an electronic billboard, an electronic advertisement or an electronic catalogue providing information about products or services. In addition, it ensures contact information for the interested consumers. To that regard, virtual advertisements or catalogues are much more flexible than physical ones. It is easier to update information which can evolve with the customers feedback given. The virtual catalogue can also be organised according to the needs and wants of consumers. Through a Website, consumers can be constantly informed about the company's new product offerings, price changes and sales promotion.

Tour operators usually launch their main summer holiday brochures 10 months in advance. In addition, they must print the supplements which adjust prices and availability. We must keep in mind that up to 40% of these brochures are not used. The printing process is expensive and time consuming whereas electronic brochures can be up dated for little cost and almost instantly. In addition, websites offer linking possibilities with the inventory data so that the customer is enabled to know whether or not a particular holiday is available. In addition, the electronic brochure can be indexed in order to be user friendly meaning that items can be located quickly through search facilities.

3.2.4 Accessibility : everywhere and at any time improving service quality

Accessibility is one of the key features of Internet as its permanently exposed to a global market reach. An efficient web site enables the company to be on business on a 24 hours a day, 365 days a year basis. From the user point of view, the web site access is ideal as he can get informations anywhere and at any time. With regard to the international trade and the different time zones, the web access is highly valuable.

We must keep in mind that until the middle of the 1990s tourism destinations were depending on promotion agencies in tourism. Thanks to the Web, tourism destinations are able to market themselves. They can design their websites and promote themselves efficiently. From a regulatory point of view, the Web avoids regulations such as restriction conditions in some countries. With regard to the advertising space, there is not limitation at all apart from the level of «bytes» of data which can be hold by the online database.

As a customer interaction tool, Internet must be considered as a way of improving service quality. Firstly, the customer gets a larger accessible choice set through the vast set of product options and service options which are displayed. Secondly, automatic processing such as cybercash or credit card chargers fasten the payment process. Thirdly, the delivery time is reduced. Fourthly, the support literature is more available.

The Internet use can be considered as a «revolution» in the tourism sector. It was the latest great change in the tourism industry as the access to information is transparent and easy. E-customers are able to compare a great bulk of information among a wide variety of choices of destinations, holiday,

packages, flights, lodging and leisure services. Thanks to the quasi immediate confirmation and speedy information, the last minute bookings are possible.

As a consequence, we can say that the relevance and promptness of tourism information are the one key driver of the consumer satisfaction. Customers are more and more concerned with the time consuming and accuracy of the information they can get. The wide access to information had a great impact on all the aspects of tourist activities. As a result, marketers are enabled to provide a personalised services at the same level as the standard packages.

4/ E-marketing : decreasing customer uncertainty

4.1 An intangible product

We must consider that tourist products can not be experienced before being purchased. As a matter of fact, this industry provides mostly intangible services. In addition, the spatial fixity of tourist attractions and amenities do not allow a quality assessment until the arrival at the destination. We must take into account the fact that until the emergence of the Internet, Tourist were obliged to rely on the holiday brochures information and all the other writing materials distributed by the destination organisations.

As a matter of fact, websites can store an unlimited amount of informations. Websites give access to informations from anywhere in the world. In addition, the Web provides a wide range of sources, whereas customers were exclusively feed with the representations and descriptions provided by the travel trade.

Another advantage of the web presence is the availability of a greater range of formats beginning from text to photos, audio, video clips... As a result the web-based eclectronic brochure is key to the success of a tourism website. Instead of spending time reading thousands of holidays brochures, the e-customer can generate browse selections linked to databases servers. The e-customer can even get a "test drive" of its future holidays through real-time scenes (e.g: cameras placed in hotels, clubs, restaurants, scenic spots or scenes of festivals and art performance)

4.2 A fragmented product

Considering that destination is a place product, tourism includes social, cultural and physical environments as well as the "touristic" components such as attractions, transport and lodging facilities. The Tourism Destination Product is fragmented as the tourist is in the search for a complete holiday experience. In fact, the tourist finds bits of its experience on the market as beds, meals, tours or seats are provided by several independent suppliers operating independently of one another. With regard to the content of destination's tourism product, the marketing of a tourism destination is shared by a great number of organisations such as tourist information centres, regional tourism boards, national tourism organisations and national tourist offices.

The Internet enables the tourism sector to develop a substainable electronic "infrastructure" which is able to establish a comprehensive and multi-lingual destination web site. The website must be able to offer up to date information about all the aspects of the destination such as attractions, transportation or accommodation. These information must be gathered by a great variety of sources in order to present the most complete and comprehensive view of the destination. To that purpose, the master destination database can be integrated through hyperlinks with individual tourism companies. In addition, e-customers must be enabled to pick and mix their own holiday packages.

In order to attract e-customers in the rather crowded web-space, mega-sites can be built in order to become the portal or home page of a given destination. This kind of portal shared by all the enterprises for a given destination helps the e-customer in its search for all the information he needs. It becomes a competitive advantage as the information provided are key in the purchasing decision. Whereas, the traditional brochures obliged the tourist to go to a travel agency or a bookshop in order to get the information needed. In comparison with a printed

brochure which is often outdated, a well constructed and maintained web site can provide right-to-the-minute information.

4.3 The e-customised offer

Internet marketing greater advantage is the tourist active role meaning that he creates value for the marketer. As a matter of fact, the tourist is enabled to display its expectations such as individual preferences or specifications of holiday packages through feedback web forms, email messages or even "clicking" patterns. Consequently, the tourism marketer can better suit its needs by developing new products or customising existing products. From this perspective, we can say that the Internet was one of the major shift factor of the offer from a mass products offer to customised and information based products.

The self-servicing aspect of the Internet is not limited to transactions online and costs reductions. The customer is really active in the production process itself. The e-customer is enabled to assemble his own product according to its own specifications which is of great help in the marketing of package holidays.

Tour operators web sites offer modular products and services (e.g: flights, rooms, tours, car hire..). Thanks to these possibilities the e-customer is enabled to participate in the development of its specific holiday packages through the simple use of a menu of options. The e-customer can "create" its own holiday package.

From a pricing point of view, the tour operator is enabled to offer lower "parts" prices to e-customers, as they negotiated and bought the components of the holiday package in a bulk. The Internet increases the reactivity level of the tour operator who is able to adjust the prices of the holiday packages in "real-time" according to the level of the customer demand. As a result, tour operators provide low cost and flexible holidays packages meaning that they are can sell individual and high quality products at a unit cost level of mass production!!!!!

The improvement of existing products is also possible with the use of Internet technologies. For instance, tourist attractions (e.g museums, galleries) can use wider format options for electronic presentation and they can also show web collections.

4.4 Electronic ticketing and ticketless travel

During the booking process, the e-customer acquires the right to use a seat or room or a holiday for a specified time period. When he goes back home the tourist does not bring back tangible products but experiences. Consequently, the only thing which was transported during the whole process is travel tickets and the tourist himself. This specific feature of intangibility is a great advantage from an e-marketing perspective as the only cost of online sale will be transaction processing expense and a little postage cost.

Electronic-ticketing or even ticketless-travel is becoming more and more popular. Ticket-less travel means that check-in is achieved by proof of identity and a booking reference number which can be considered as an added value for enterprises and e-customers. In fact, it saves the ticketing cost which includes stationery, printing and postage. It also speed up the check-in process at airports as the passengers are able to self check-in at check in machines with a credit card. Ticketless-travel benefits to the e-customer as it is a time saving process and less expensive. For instance, Bristish Airways has even announced that from 2000 travellers will be charged £25 for a printed ticket where e-ticketing is available for the flight. It could also cost the traveller £50 to replace a lost paper ticket.

Electronic ticketing seems to be a key development of the tourism industry which is going to accelerate the acceptability and convenience of air travel booking via on-line travel agents. As an e-ticket seller do not need to deliver a physical ticket to deliver, he can potentially sell from anywhere in the world to anyone.

5/ E-marketing: providing a reliable and useful customer database

5.1 The Marketing research perspective

The Internet is much more than the automation of online business transaction, it is a way of getting a vast amount of information which were not available in the past. As Marketing is an information processing activity, the Internet is a great source of marketing intelligence constantly up to date. The company's own site makes possible to get information about the customers need and their value.

Consequently, the Internet is a highly valuable tool in the building of a customer information database. The use of cookies, web forms or email feedback is possible. In addition to that simple tools, some software such as Aurum Software's Web Trak are available. With the information gathered, the work force can easily identify prospects, get a better understanding of customer needs and even customised resources in order to increase the customers service level. An online database of transaction histories can be considered as the primary marketing resource of tourism companies. This online database can help to determine what kind of travel products can be delivered, what market segments are the best served, and the lifetime value of each customer to the firm.

5.2 The Customer databases management practises

Developing a better understanding of the customers means that tourism organisations must bring together data from different sources. To that purpose KPMG developed a model for the evolution of customer databases:

-The fist stage of the model implies the storage of data in electronic format by each department of the organisation or by different type of application without the possibility for cross-checking and information sharing.

- The second stage consists in the linking of the different databases in order to automatically passes the information to the others whenever the customer's record is updated in one system.

- The third stage which is the most advanced one implies the development of a data warehouse system. The data warehouse system must be able to analyse customer data and assess its value.

It seems that the vast majority of the tourism companies are maintaining different databases and thus remain at the first stage of the evolution model. These customers databases are mostly used for e-mails sending and notifying customers of future promotions. This lack of consolidated customer databases is due to the development and completion of e-CRM projects which are still underway. In addition, the consolidation of customer databases is a time consuming process which implies significant financial resources due to the high degree of fragmentation of existing data sources.

From a practical point of view, the consolidation of customers databases represents a huge task. It needs to bring together the booking system, the customer knowledge database and the database of the website. It can represent a huge amount of data. However the e-CRM success key is to obtain a coherent view of customers' attitudes and buying habits.

If we examine the practice of the firms, it seems that sometimes the information collected from customers are not enough detailed and do not allow them to target specific customer groups or to provide one-to-one marketing campaigns. However, customers' choice tracking which is a technical function available at most web sites can bring in informative data about the browsing, the concentration of breaks down and thus help to adjust the offers.

Some companies set up web facilities in order to enable customers to create, update and modify their own personal profile. The customers can get information about their travel records. They can also choose the information received, the frequency and the preferred medium (e.g: e-mail, SMS, WAP, printed newsletter).

Other companies implement customer loyalty programmes. The customers are enabled to apply for a subscription card or a "ticket book" online. Then, the customers data are stored in the company's customer database and used in order to offer information about discount, company news...

In addition, we must take into consideration the characteristics and attitude of the customer base. As a matter of fact, customers seem to be less interested in the other services offered online such as newsletter, promotions or additional information.

5.3 The Market Targeting

The Web can be considered as an active medium from the consumer point of view. Consumers are free to search for the information of the products and brands in which they are interested. That way it is possible to get the level of interest and involvement of the consumer in visiting the web site. In addition, instantaneous feedback is provided from the consumer to the marketer. The click and hit of the user which are stored by the web server constitute a feedback. The storing of the consumer feedback can be then analysed through the IT data mining techniques and turned into meaningful marketing information.

Visitation data can be very useful in the building of the e-customer profile. To that purpose, the total number of hits, the distribution of the hits among the pages and across time, the order of the pages been accessed can be easily combined with other user profile information such as registrations through online questionnaires. This combination of data can help to fulfil the consumers needs, its interest and the patterns of demand and buying behaviour. Consequently, the marketer can indentify the target segments and even niches. The collection and analysis of these informations help the marketer to develop a real one-to-one marketing in order a to increase the level of service.

The web makes it easier to get and collect the psychological and behavioural or lifestyle data at a modest price. As a matter of fact, Internet marketing provides the collection of the data from every potential user of the company web site, whereas the filling of web forms requires a tangible reward. In addition, email messages or tailor-made web pages can reach the e-customer at a low price.

With regard to the niches, virtual communities can be built up easily with the use of news-groups. Usually these news-groups are targeting e-consumers with quite the same interest and behavioural pattern. The members of the virtual community can exchange information on a regularly basis and experience quite often a sense of belonging. As a result, these customers become more loyal to the companies.

6/ CONCLUSION: e-CRM adoption, the challenges to face

6.1 Focus on the SMEs: the tricky adoption of ICT and e-business solutions

We must take into consideration that investing in ICT and e-business solutions is quite complicated for SMEs as they have to rationalise each investment. However, the collaboration developed between organisations and worldwide-operated systems (e.g. reservation, booking systems) have conditioned SMEs in the adoption of ICt and e business solutions.

SMEs have to face the lack of standardisation between the different e-business solutions deployed across. That is the very reason why they are afraid of costly investment in systems which would not be able to be integrated into other systems. Taking into account the very nature of tourism and the business capacities of SMEs in comparison with large multinational, collaborative e-business (e.g. marketplaces or portals) is essential. Unfortunately, standards differ from one portal to another.

As stated above, SMEs are often unable to invest in e-business systems and applications, meanwhile, the tourism market rely more and more upon Internet. Consequently, the building of e-marketplaces with the other industry players will enable SMEs to gain a stronger profile in a higly competitive environment. As

e-marketplaces require compatibility between business practices, SMEs are obliged to manage these complicated technical interoperability matters. This technical interoperability matter is quite tricky as most of the SMEs entrepreneurs have a limited knowledge of the ICT and e-business developments.

The new collaborative e-commerce enables SMEs to interact with its partners resources and capabilities. This interaction includes real-time collaborative design, virtual requisitioning, and joint product or service development. It means that SMEs create value through the use of their partner's resources.

ICT and e-business solutions are mostly addressed to the larger enterprises of the sectors. In fact, IT vendors do have a limited knowledge of SMEs and are mostly interested in SMEs development. That is the reason why they provide limited adaptation solutions to the smaller organisations.

One of the main problem that SMEs have to resolve with regard to the use of ICT and e-business system is the focus of ICT vendors on larger enterprises. Even if SMEs represents the vast majority of the tourism industry players, the systems available for them are still limited.

The reluctance of SMEs in the adoption of ICT solutions developed for larger firms seems to be legitimated by the applications of these solutions. These solutions are more profitable to larger firms as they are created on the basis of economies of scale and a "critical mass" of users. In addition, the larger firms influence ICT suppliers in order to obtain the design and development of systems that encompass their particular needs. As a result, SMEs are becoming the ICT market follower of the larger enterprises. Consequently, the forming of relationships with counterparts within a region or a specific destination is likely to benefit to SMEs. This kind of alliance would enable them to improve their efficiency, reduce their costs and improve their revenues by gaining more dynamic holidays packages or stronger marketing resources.

6.2 The perceiWed barriers to the adoption of e-CRM solutions

Obviously, the maturity of the market, the financial resources required and the prevailing structures and modes of practices within organisations are the most important barriers to the adoption of e-CRM solutions.

In many places throughout Europe local customers are not familiar with the purchasing online and are not prepared to make reservations without a human interface.

Considering that the tourism industry operates with low margins, the important financial investments in the introduction of e-CRM solutions is a barrier to the adoption of these systems. For some companies the investments must be justified to shareholders and thus compensated in a reasonable period of time.

The tourism organisations culture and organisational structure is another barrier to the adoption of eCRM solutions. The organisations are not always ready to adopt these solutions as some departments show a resistance to change and slow down the adoption. That is the reason why a common vision must be developed in order to eliminate conflicts between new and traditional sale methods.

According to a survey conducted on CRM in the global travel industry by KPMG in 2001, few software-based CRM solutions are designed to meet the needs of the travel industry. Consequently, the travel industry considers that technology vendors and suppliers lack the critical technology skills and knowledge of the tourism industry operation processes.

The complexity of travel products and the periodic changes in consumer tastes and behaviours are considered as additional barriers to the adoption of e-business methods in CRM. As a matter of fact, some destinations become fashionable for a certain period of time while travellers' tastes and demands evolve over time. Consequently, the "industrialisation" of tourism products is a difficult task to handle.

6.3 The step-by-step implementation of e-business methods

Considering all the barriers described above, many tourism organisations remain cautious in the implementation in the e-business methods. That step-by-step approach aims to take into account the company's identity and image with customers.

Even if e-commerce implies cost savings and the deepening of relationships with regular customers, some companies consider that their adoption of e-CRM solutions must follow the market and the industry circumstances which are highly impacted by unforeseable events (e. g terrorist attacks, tsunamis, Sras).

Nevertheless, the vast majority of the tourism organisations are willing to extend e-business in their organisation within the next two years. They believe that as customers will get more used and confident in the Internet, they will extend the implementation of their e-business solutions. Some companies consider that the expansion of e-business is the strategic choice which would help them becoming the leading players in the online market.

According to the Socio-economic Trends Assessment for the digital Revolution (STAR)⁵ survey conducted in 2002⁶, tourism organisations just begin to experiment e-CRM applications. As a matter of fact, traditional sales methods still account for over 90% of their revenues. However, the fierce competition within the industry seems to be one of the drivers of e-CRM solutions. As some companies pioneer in the adoption of eCRM solutions, the others feel that they must follow the trend in order to remain competitive.

Still, all the players of the industry see the Internet more as an efficient tool of communication and interface with customers than as a new business model. The vast majority of companies interviewees during the STAR research reported that any functional changes brought about as a result of e-CRM solutions were essentially

5 STAR is an initiative of Key Action II "New Methods of Work and Electronic Commerce', one of four key actions of the User-Friendly Information Society Programme. The IST Programme is part of the European Union's Fifth Framework Programme for Research and Development,

extensions of existing business practices to new sales channels. As a matter of fact, the functional changes generated by the adoption of e-CRM solutions were mostly extensions of existing business practices to new sales channels.

Obviously the increasing maturity of the market and the sufficient number of experienced e-customers are necessary to make the Internet channel a meaningful investment for all the industry players. That is the very reason why CRM strategies are considered as "peripheral activities" to the companies which are operating in the less mature and small markets. Investment in e-CRM solutions is not their top priority has they do not expect a large number of users and thus a very scare return on investment.

In spite of the fact that consumer are interested in surfing the Internet, the vast majority of e-customers still prefer the personalised service provided by travel agents. As they are overloaded with information the european customers mainly rely upon human interaction with travel agents. If we consider business customers, it seems that human interaction is not going to be replaced by online services as their travel arrangements are complex and often requires the "human touch" of an experienced travel agent.

However, a new 'web-savvy' customer emerges. This "web-savy" customer uses the web as a rich information medium. He seeks travel information, compares prices, and then proceeds to purchase complex travel products online. That is the reason why the leading players, including airlines and tour operators, have increasingly started to offer a variety of customer services online and they are particularly successful in attracting this "web savy" customer group indeed.

It seems to be too early to assess the real impact of e-CRM methods on the companies' competitive performance. However, we can assess that e-business technologies have facilitated the shift in the focus of companies from supply to demand while customer retention and satisfaction are shown to have improved as a result of companies' online presence.

In order to realise productivity gains, the tourism organisations have to increase the efficiency level of their back office operations. As a matter of fact, the value of CRM initiatives depends on back office processes and the flow of information containing important customer data between the front and back offices of a company. This strategy is let as it allows the companies to focus on the key customer groups which can generate additional profits.

For the tourism industry which witnessed the introduction of GDS 30 years ago, the e-business methods help to transpose the existing techniques on to cheaper distribution channels and thus developing sales potential. However, the e-CRM solutions and ITCs must bring benefits to a supply driven market meaning that it must manage the growth and the maintaining of a stable employee numbers, automate back office and fulfilment operations, standardise products and operations.

As a conclusion we can say that the real challenge is not the implementation of technology-based CRM solutions itself but rather the adoption of the necessary technological, organisation and cultural changes within the companies. Data-warehouses adoption must be coupled with customer intelligence systems. Concerning the organisation itself, they must be data integration inter-departmental communication and links with distributors and resellers. With regard to the corporate culture, the organisation must be customer-centric in order to provide the best service. All the ingredients would allow CRM to contribute to the productivity and profitability of the tourism organisations.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Stefan Klein and Dimitrios Buhalis, Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2000, Edited by Daniel R. Fesenmaier, Springer-Velag Wien, New York; 2000; ISBN 3-211-83483-4; 518pp

This book is a collection of papers published by the Seventh International Conference on Information Technology and Tourism, organised by the International Federation of Information Technology and Tourism (IFITT), which was held in April 2000 in Barcelona.

The first part of the book describes the application of natural language processing and the intelligent interfaces for tourist. . Other highly technical papers examine conceptual and theoretical issues concerning the application of computer systems, information technology and management science to tourism research. It also evaluates the opportunities and challenges created. Some papers examine managerial and organisational issues focusing on information management and the impact of ICTs on tourist and tourism organisations. Considering that most of the tourism SMEs have been developing Internet-based online services, several papers deal with this issue.

Even if some papers were sometimes too technical, the book is very broad in focus. I was very interested in the papers presenting case studies and practical examples for tourism marketing and tourism information technology. What makes the book highly valuable and useful is the variety of the sources meaning that the papers were written by research laboratories, local, national and multinational business or social bodies. In addition, the authors had different academic backgrounds such as computer science, information systems, business, hospitality, tourism management, economics or marketing. As a result, the book provides a great amount of new ideas and research findings

Robert Lanquar, Robert Hollier, Le marketing touristique, Paris, PUF, coll Que sais-je 6th updated edition, 2001, 125pp

"Que sais-je" is a higly valuable collection giving a complete overview of the subject it deals with. I often use this book collection during my studies considering that it gives reliable information and a real insight of the subject. It is usually written in a very clear style. Thanks to this book I really understood what is specific about tourism marketing, what are the main issues, how destination organisations are dealing with tourism products

The book begins with a short historic and definition of concepts. The fist chapter determines the specifities of the tourism product, the collection of data and its analysis. It describes how market researches and how customer segmentation are done. The second chapter deals with all the aspects of the promotion examining information, public relations and advertising in the tourism sector. The third chapter deals with the selling process, examining the different distribution channels, the commercial offer toward the professionals and the customers. As a conclusion, the author examines the "integrated marketing" approach by describing the operational process, the choice of partnership and the budget choices.

Dr Ravi Kalakota, Marcia Robinson, e-Business 2.0 Roadmap for Success, Addison-Wesley Information Technology Series, , November 2000, ISBN 0-201-72165-1

First of all, it was very interesting to read a book written by two authors who have experienced themselves the migration from a traditional business model to an e-business model by working with leading companies. They give a clear picture of the benefits and challenges that e-business companies have to face. They also identify the fundamental design principles for building a successful e-business blueprint.

Second of all, the book deals with the strategy which allows industry leaders and upstarts companies to take maximum advantages of the latest technological trends. The authors reveals how successful companies have implemented focused e-business strategies to build cutting-edge enterprises that serve and retain customers, and integrate better selling chains.

I really appreciate the practical perspective of the book as it gives a lot of case studies and some clear and helpful schemes. The second chapter helps me to understand the customer-oriented trends and e-service trends. The sixth chapter makes me understood the basics of Customer Relationship Management, the CRM architecture and its trends. Then, the seventh chapter helps me to understand the process which transform customer contact into revenue considering from a selling chain perspective.

Zongciing Zhou, Ph.D. E-Commerce and Information Technology in Hospitality and Tourism, WTO, 1st Edition (2004)

The travel professional who wants to stay on the cutting edge will find this to be a great resource. Employing the concepts, ideas and technologies discussed in this book will dramatically improve customer service and marketing in this age of technology.

This book which targets professionals provides an extensive review of the Internet as an agent of change in hospitality and tourism information technology and commerce. To that purpose, it uses pratical examples and case studies. It contains essential information about business-to-business and business-to-consumer e-commerce models It also provides marketing schemes and strategies used by various sectors of the industry. A discussion of e-commerce answers questions about reliability, privacy and security as they relate to Internet transactions.

Travel professionals will benefit from a detailed review of the Internet's impact on various sectors of the industry including travel agencies, airlines, hotels, cruise lines, bed and breakfasts, online travel stores and more. In addition, the glossary of terms, the chapter highlights help to get a clearer picture of the subject. It also leads to valuable resources available on related Web sites. From a theoretical perspective, the book discuss the future use of technology in the industry.

E-Business for Tourism - Practical Guidelines for Destinations and Businesses, WTO, 2001, ISBN: 9284404592

This report targets the tourism organisations which would like to enter the E-Business field. It is a very practical book and I really appreciated that perspective indeed. First of all, the report explains the concepts of E-Business and Customer Relationship Management. It gives an overview of the changes in the value chains and of the evolving role of DMOs. Second of all, the report provides practical guidelines which are built on a step-by-step basis and illustrated with case studies and examples. These practical guidelines are intended to help DMOs to respond to the challenges they have to face by developing E-Business systems, and specifically by developing the best Web sites for their consumers, intermediaries, travel media and tourism businesses.

Considering the structure of the industry and the challenges which must be faced by SMEs in the adoption of ICT and Internet, I found very interesting that the book is focusing on SMEs tourism suppliers. In addition, it aims to help in the development of E-Business strategy for all type of organisation in the tourism industry. It gives an overview of the relevant E Business applications and services, offers a step-by-step guide for the implementation and points out the critical success factors always accompanied with detailed case studies. This report helped me to understand the issues regarding the technological changes, how it impacts the organisation itself. The main

This report prepared by the World Tourism Organization Business Council targets the professionals (public and private sectors) of the tourism industry. It is a very practical guide of the new information and promotion technologies. The report begins with the analysis of the influence of the Internet on the tourism product, focusing on the claim of tourism supply. Then, the report examines the changes in consumers' expectations for the major tourism generating countries caused by the Internet. It also deal with the new players of the travel and tourism industry. It explains who they are and the reasons why they have entered the market. It specifically describes tge key features and best practices of Destination Marketing Organization Web Sites. To that purpose 25 Web Sites were evaluated and 6 case studies were undertaken.

The historical review of the Online Travel Distribution gave me an overview of the evolution of the e-tourism. The Destination Marketing Organization Case studies and the first Appendix of 25 best practice Web sites was higly

valuable in order to understand how to built efficient Web sites in the tourism industry. I really appreciated the practical perspective of this book as it is built as a guide for professionals of the tourism industry. It helps me to understand the challenges and impacts to be faced by the tourism industry in the so called information age.

Dr Anastasia Constantelou, Emerging Trends in Customer Relation Management Using ICT: the Travel Industry, Socio-economic Trends Assessment for the digital Revolution, Issue Report N.22, October 2002

I found this report highly interesting as it focuses on the use of ICTs in the tourism organisation and management of customer relations. It also elaborates the potential evolution of the ICTs. This report uses the results of an exploratory study which was conducted with 18 companies in Germany, Greece, Italy, France and the UK. Detailed interviews were conducted in the summer 2002. The structured interview questionnaire was divided into five sections which were looking at the functional changes, the organisation changes, the impacts of change and the drivers, barriers and perspectives from the introduction of e-CRM.

The findings of this report establish that even though the majority of surveyed companies value e-CRM, few of them have actually been engaged in mature, long term planning e-CRM adoption and use. According to this report, the real challenge is to realise productivity gains in the automation of the back office operations. The implementation of technology-based CRM solutions is not the main issue to handle. In fact, the associated organisational and cultural changes within the companies are the keys which enable CRM to contribute to productivity and profitability.

World Tourism Organization, Survey of Destination Management Organisations Report April 2004

This large-scale research of Destination Management Organisations (DMOs) has been undertaken for the World Tourism Organization by Tourism Enterprise and Management (TEAM). This research was carried out on a global basis. This benchmark survey aim is to track the development and activites of DMOs organisations. The study includes specific data relating to the size and scale of DMOs as well as their opinions on key issues and the role of international organisations like the WTO. Of the 550 DMOs approached, 44% responded, mostly through an on line survey.

To me the most interesting was that this report identifies core marketing and product development activities, information collection and reservations roles undertaken by the DMOs. The report establishes that the use of ^knew media' activities will represent an increasingly important aspect of the DMOs marketing. This anticipated growth includes CRM, Email Marketing, the use of IT systems and Real time Web reservations services. The study also focuses specifically on the degree to which DMOs had adopted and implemented an e-business strategy.

E-Business Watch, Enterprises publications, Electronic Business in Tourism Sector, Report: No. 07-II, August 2004, Key issues, case studies, conclusions⁷

The European Commission, Enterprise Directorate General, launched the e-Business W@tch to monitor the growing maturity of electronic business across different sectors of the economy in the enlarged European Union

This report is the second Sector Impact Study on electronic business in the tourism industry published by the e-Business W@tch in the 2003/04 period. It builds on the first study from May 2004 which mainly presented the quantitative picture, focusing on the results of the e-Business Survey 2003. This study analyses in more detail specific issues which were found to be particularly relevant for the sector at stake. The analysis is supported by case studies and statistical results from the 2003 survey.

The conclusions of the report are very interesting as it summarises the main business implications for firms in the sector stemming from ICT and e-business, and assess the main drivers and impediments for the future

development of electronic business in the sector. Finally, the study points at ICT related policy challenges, starting with considerations about the overall implications of ICT for policy and leading to more sector specific aspects.

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D'après l'article L1 13-4, « l 'oeuvre composite est la propriété de l 'auteur qui l 'a réalisée, sous réserve des droits de l 'auteur de l 'oeuvre préexistante ».

L'article L1 31-4 alinéa 3 stipule que « les cessions portant sur les droits d'adaptation audiovisuelle doivent faire l'objet d'un contrat écrit sur un document distinct du contrat relatif à l 'édition proprement dite de l 'oeuvre imprimée ». On peut se demander si le choix de l'option qui autorise les modifications ne contraindrait pas à recourir à deux contrats Creative Commons séparées, de manière à respecter cette disposition qui vise à protéger l'auteur en lui faisant prendre conscience du fait qu'il s'agit de deux actes de cession bien différents. La réponse est non car les licences Creative Commons ne sont pas assimilables à des contrats d'édition au sens de l'article L132-1 du CPI : elles ne prévoient pas d'obligation pour le

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Les documents Creative Commons n'imposent pas une renonciation définitive, mais permettent une renonciation provisoire et une clarification (8). L'auteur pourra touj ours faire reconnaître sa paternité.

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Le titulaire des droits sur l'oeuvre conserve le contrôle du moment et des conditions de sa divulgation et de sa communication au public, non pour s'assurer de la réservation des droits exclusifs, mais pour rendre l'oeuvre libre de certains droits.

Certains pourraient se demander si la condition de Partage à l'Identique des Conditions Initiales ou ShareAlike ne constitue pas une atteinte au droit de divulgation de la personne qui, ayant accepté une oeuvre sous de telles conditions contractuelles, la modifie en apportant une contribution originale, et acquiert elle-même le statut d'auteur de la nouvelle oeuvre dite dérivée.

Le nouvel auteur conserve ses prérogatives et décide du moment de la divulgation de la nouvelle oeuvre. Il ne lui est pas interdit de la divulguer sous des conditions différentes, mais c'est à la condition d'obtenir une autorisation écrite de la part de l'auteur de l'oeuvre préexistante, comme dans le système juridique classique, hors Creative Commons.

Le contrôle de l'utilisation après divulgation en vertu des options Partage des Conditions Initiales à l'Identique (Share Alike) et Pas d'Utilisation Commerciale (Non Commercial) n'est-il pas incompatible avec le principe d'épuisement des droits ?

L'épuisement du droit de distribution prévu en droit communautaire établit qu'une fois l'original de l'oeuvre ou sa copie mise en circulation sur le territoire communautaire avec le consentement du titulaire de ce droit, par exemple après la première vente, il ne peut plus exercer ledit droit. Le titulaire ne peut donc exercer ce droit de propriété intellectuelle qu'une seule fois, il ne peut pas l'exercer à nouveau dans un autre Etat-membre. L'épuisement ne concerne que la distribution physique d'exemplaires matériels, de supports, à l'exclusion des services en ligne et des copies licites en découlant (Directive 2001/29/CE sur l'harmonisation de certains aspects du droit d'auteur et des droits voisins dans la société de l'information, article 4.2 et considérant 29). Le titulaire conserve ses autres droits patrimoniaux. L'article 2 des contrats Creative Commons stipule bien qu'ils s'appliquent sans préjudice du droit applicable, et ne visent donc en aucun cas à restreindre ce type de prérogatives. On peut toutefois se demander si le fait de restreindre les conditions d'utilisation après la première mise à disposition respecte l'épuisement.

Tout d'abord, les options Partage des Conditions Initiales à l'Identique (Share Alike) et Pas d'Utilisation Commerciale (Non Commercial) ne conduisent pas à interdire formellement toute modification qui ne serait pas proposée aux mêmes conditions ou toute utilisation commerciale, ce qui reviendrait à imposer des conditions de distribution. Elles se contentent simplement de réserver les droits non proposés, qui continuent à requérir l'autorisation du titulaire des droits, à l'instar du droit d'auteur classique.

Enfin, on peut rappeler que la notion d'épuisement est utilisée en droit communautaire à des fins de régulation économique. Elle est utile dans les situations où un ayant-droit abuse de son monopole pour affecter le commerce et la concurrence en interdisant la commercialisation ou en imposant des restrictions quantitatives à l'importation ou des mesures d'effet équivalent. Les objectifs du Traité de Rome sont de lutter contre le cloisonnement du marché intérieur et les abus de position dominante. Sont visées d'un côté les entraves à la libre circulation des marchandises constitutives d'obstacles à la commercialisation sur le territoire national de produits régulièrement mis en circulation sur le territoire d'un autre Etat membre, et de l'autre la faculté de contrôler les actes ultérieurs de commercialisation et d'interdire les réimportations. Certaines restrictions ont d'ailleurs été admises par la Cour de Justice des Communautés Européennes ; ainsi, l'arrêt Cinéthèque (10) valide comme conforme au droit communautaire la loi française sur la chronologie des médias (11) qui impose un délai entre l'exploitation des films en salle et la vente ou la location de supports.

Il n'y a pas de clause déterminant la loi applicable et la juridiction compétente dans les contrats Creative Commons. Les règles de droit international privé prévalent, et, pour choisir la loi applicable, le juge saisi déterminera le lieu d'exécution de la prestation caractéristique du contrat, ou le lieu du dommage ou du dépôt de la plainte.

Les contrats Creative Commons prévoient à l'article 8c que si un article s'avère invalide ou inapplicable au regard de la loi en vigueur, cela n'entraîne pas l'inapplicabilité ou la nullité des autres dispositions, l'article en question devant être interprété de manière à le rendre valide et applicable.

Les clauses abusives sont réputées non écrites si le contrat conduit à établir des rapports déséquilibrés entre les droits et obligations entre un professionnel et un consommateur (12). Un raisonnement a fortiori permet de déduire que les offres Creative Commons satisfont ces exigences, ainsi que les exigences de prudence et d'information.

Un auteur peut se retourner contre la personne qui utilise son oeuvre sans respecter les conditions qui lui sont attachées. L'auteur qui estimerait qu'il y a eu atteinte à ses prérogatives patrimoniales pourrait touj ours demander au juge une révision du contrat.

Le bénéficiaire du contrat pourrait également se retourner contre le donneur de contrat qui a transmis une oeuvre contrefaisante.