HITEC 2001 Interviews - Pegasus Solutions, Inc - Mr. John F. Davis III - CEO & Chairman, Pegasus Solutions

Dallas-based Pegasus Solutions, Inc. (www.pegs.com) is a leading global provider of hotel reservation technologies. Its services include central reservations systems; electronic distribution services that connect more than 40,000 hotels to the Internet and to the global distribution systems (GDS); travel agent commission processing and payment services; the consumer Internet site TravelWeb.com (www.travelweb.com); the Utell marketing and reservation representation service (www.utell.com); and PegasusCentral ™, a Web-based enterprise solution with property management applications.Pegasus' customers comprise more than 100,000 travel agencies around the world, including nine of the 10 largest U.S.-based travel agencies; more than 40,000 hotel properties around the globe, including 18 of the 20 largest hotel companies in the world based on revenues and total number of guest rooms; and thousands of Web sites/services have their hotel reservations Powered by Pegasus™. In addition to its corporate headquarters in Dallas, Pegasus has 35 offices in 22 countries, including regional hubs in Phoenix, London and Singapore. The company's stock is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol PEGS.

Bio John F. Davis III
CEO & Chairman, Pegasus Solutions
John F. Davis III serves as chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Dallas-based Pegasus Solutions, Inc., PEGS, a leading worldwide provider of electronic hotel distribution technology and representation solutions.

In 1989, Davis led the launch of the Pegasus Electronic Distribution "switch" technology, which was created originally to link the central reservation systems of hotel companies with the major airline global distribution systems (GDS) that travel agents use, such as SABRE and Galileo. Today, the Electronic Distribution switch technology connects approximately 32,000 hotels to the GDSs as well as to alternative distribution channels such as the Internet.

Davis also led the formation of Pegasus Commission Processing in 1992. As the world's largest provider of hotel commission payment processing services, Pegasus Commission Processing provides major hotel organizations and more than 85,000 travel agencies worldwide with consolidated commission payment and management reporting via an electronic network.

In 1994, Davis launched TravelWeb.com, one of the Web's largest hotel information and booking sites.

In 1998, he created Pegasus Business Intelligence, a hotel industry data warehousing and database marketing service.

In 2000, he led Pegasus' acquisition of REZsolutions, Inc., the hotel industry's largest third-party marketing and reservation provider. With this transaction, Pegasus grew to 2,000 employees located in 25 countries.

Earlier in his career, Davis co-founded a toll-free ordering company, 800-FLOWERS, for the floral industry. After selling this company, he founded a telemarketing company, ATC Communications. Within two years, ATC's sales had jumped from zero to $25 million and its staff had grown to 1,200 employees. By 1988, Davis had made ATC one of the nation's largest providers of inbound and outbound telemarketing services. Prior to these entrepreneurial successes, Davis was president of Mid-South Drilling Company as well as the campaign director and treasurer for Senator John G. Tower's re-election campaign in 1978.

Davis has received numerous awards and accolades for his contributions to the travel industry. In 2001, the Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals inducted Davis into its 2001 International Technology Hall of Fame for his years of influence in the hospitality technology industry. Travel Agent Magazine named Davis the hotel industry's "Person of the Year" in 2000, and Business Travel News named Davis to its "Travel Industry Hall of Fame" in 1999 recognizing Davis as one of the elite in the industry. Additionally, Business Travel News named Davis one of the business travel industry's 25 Most Influential Executives in 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998 and 1999. Lodging magazine named Davis to its 1999 and 2000 lists of the top 75 executives in the hotel industry. Interactive Travel Report named Davis the "Person of the Year in Interactive Travel" in 1998. In 1997, Davis was named one of the "25 Most Influential People in the Meetings Industry" by Meeting News. In 1991, Davis was named as one of Travel Agent Magazine's "People of the Year" for "solving problems for hoteliers and agents." Computerworld named Davis an "Agent of Change" in 1995. Davis resides on the boards of Pegasus Solutions, the Dallas Visitors and Conventions Bureau and TRX, Inc.

Davis received a bachelor of business administration degree from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas. Today, Davis, age 47, lives in Dallas, Texas with his wife and three sons.

Interview Topics

• The future of PMSs
• Value of ASPs to Hotel Industry
• Pegasus' Recent Growth