Air Malta has today announced it will be launching its new website early next year that will include enhancements to its booking engine. The new site will provide a framework for the updating and the re-launching of a range of Air Malta services and is yet another step in the airline’s restructuring initiatives aimed at offering customers a better online experience.

The new website, which will take advantage of new technical improvements available on the market, will embrace social media functionality to offer a richer media experience and better promote both the Maltese islands and the airline.

The site will be re-designed to offer a one-stop-shop to customers through a range of online booking and payment facilities that include Air Malta flights, a wide selection of hotel accommodation in Malta and car hire. www.airmalta.com will be available in six languages (Maltese, English, French, German, Italian and Russian), and will be redesigned in a way as to provide a clear content structure and better aesthetic design.

The website will use location-recognition technology whereby clients from different countries will be presented with targeted content and advertising according to their geographic location. With integrated social and business-intelligence tools, Air Malta will also be able to detect behavioural patterns that will allow it to better shape its product-offering to convert its visitors into loyal customers.

The new site will be developed by the local firm ICON (www.icon.com.mt) who was selected following a comprehensive request for information and a request for proposals procedure. Both local and foreign organisations have competed in this process which was headed by a team from the commercial, IT and the project management office.

Currently www.airmalta.com attracts 15,000 daily visits with over 10,000 online bookings every month.