E-tourism developments in Malaysia information communication technologies adoption for the strategic managements of the Malaysian tourism industry

• Main Authors: Ibrahim, Amlus, Che Mat, Ruzinoor, Ramayah, T., Boey, Julie Chyaw In
• Other Authors: Kasim, Azilah
• Format: Book Section
• Language: English
• Published: Penerbit Universiti Utara Malaysia 2007
• Subjects: GV Recreation Leisure; T Technology (General)
• Online Access: http://repo.uum.edu.my/5581/1/E-TOURISM_DEVELOPMENTS_IN_MALAYSIA.pdf; http://repo.uum.edu.my/5581/; http://lintas.uum.edu.my:8080/elmu/index.jsp?module=webopac-l&action=fullDisplayRetriever.jsp&szMaterialNo=0000758109

Information Communication Technologies (ICT) has changed the global tourism industry rapidly. The implication of the Internet and other growing interactive multimedia platforms for tourism are far reaching and alter the structure of the industry. Tourism as an industry requires a diverse range of information and lends itself well to the support offered by developing multimedia, communication technologies and information system. As tourism plays a significant role in the Malaysian economy, this study aims to explore the impact of ICT and the Internet in particular for the future competitiveness of the destination in tourist industry. This paper also explores the current state of e-tourism developments in the Malaysian tourism industry. In addition, it investigates a number of issues related to e-tourism industry in Malaysia, including establishments using the Internet and e-commerce penetration and usage, linkages in the marketplace, degree of online cooperation among tourism industry players. This paper also assesses how the e-tourism concept and technique can contribute to the improvement of Malaysian tourism competitiveness, while it identifies transferable lesson for other regions around the world. An anticipated outcome of the study is to generate an understanding and prediction of the potential e-tourism opportunities within Malaysian tourism industry in the near future. It also tries to explore the potential growth of e-tourism within the industry. Although the use of e-tourism among the Malaysian tourist industry is still in its early stages and the rate of adoption is slow, we argue that there is great opportunity for it to take off with the advent of low cost budget carriers such as Air Asia and also low cost tours and hotel offerings that has defined the new generation of educated and budget savvy travelers.