No sooner do we announce the signing of GolfPlanet Holidays as the latest users of our 'MARS' Tour Operator reservations software than two of the best names in the Golf Holidys business go bust! They cannot have been that worried - surely!!!

On a serious note, it is very sad to see more travel trade jobs disappear. 3D Golf and Longshot Holidays and the disappearance of other brands in the Intra Group will make a big impact on the Golf Holidays sector as a whole. The challange for the remaining tour operators will be to use their websites to ensure that they can gain additional business 'online'. GolfPlanet Holidays and particulary their French Golf Holidays brand have signed up specifically to sell holidays online. Great timing for them!

While on the subject of Golf Holidays I must not for get to mention our other Golf Holidays specialist, customer - Driveline Golf. They book holidays worldwide for individuals and groups. Like all our customers they make air and ferry/Eurotunnel bookings for the transport elements of their packages.

Mach Associates are delighted to say that GolfPlanet Holidays have become the latest user of our MARS tour operator reservations software.

GolfPlanet Holidays offer golfers a worldwide choice of holiday destinations. Other products within the company include French Golf Holidays and Conceige Collection. The former provides a range of holidays throughout France with travel options including self drive and fly drive, staying at the very best Hotels near to the finest Golf courses in the country. Conceige Holidays are for the non Golfer's amongst us.

Mach Associates are providing our WEBOOKIT feature in addition to MARS so that GolfPlanet can provide their holidays on line. There will be several innovative commercial and booking features, so watch this space for future announcements.

It was sad news indeed, to hear that Blue Sky Travel Systems have gone into administration. It is never nice to hear that good professional people have lost their jobs.

I do not know the background to the situation that that caused their problems, other that what was reported in the trade press. However, there must have had serious difficulties integrating the application to the various business brands at TC for the customer to cancel the contract! It will have serious implications for TC as well so they cannot have taken the decision lightly.

The current question is what do 'interested' parties see in the remains of "Blue Sky"? They must have some technical interest but is it really that they think that if they buy the application rights to the software that there is chance of 'picking up' the TC business? If so, I think it is a long shot!

A, reputed, £20 million Software development is always a problematic thing, by it's very nature the relationship between the software house and the client will always have be difficult because they naturally have different perceptions of requirement and delivery - not to mention priority. The latter because these always change due to market pressure. In the end it comes down to trust and in this case that appears to have ceased.

My own opinion is that "Blue Sky" did a good job but close does not win you the cigar. A debate about how Web Browser based systems could meet this scale of project may well now start because everyone will be very interested in where Thomas Cook go from here and what technology platform they will use in the future!