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TOURISM EXCHANGE GREAT BRITAIN LIMITED

TXGB Destination Cloud Platform

Tourism Exchange Great Britain (TXGB) is a B2B digital platform that connects the tourism sector, enabling stronger collaboration, knowledge transfer, increased trade, wider tourism dispersal and deeper insights from data in the platform.

TXGB provides tourism authorities with services that enable smarter and more sustainable marketing and management of destinations.

Features

  • Cloud platform that connects destination product inventory to distributions channels
  • Cloud platform to establish destination eCommerce platform for tourism businesses
  • Digitally enable local providers that are not accepting online bookings
  • Real-time view of bookings across all channels for local products
  • Self-service onboarding workflow for local product providers with online support
  • Destination dashboard with data visualisations to review booking trends
  • API connectivity to cloud based booking systems to simplify onboarding
  • API to enable integration with existing destination websites / apps
  • PCI Compliant customisable toolkit enabling online bookability without API integration
  • Automatic reconciliation of bookings and commission payments

Benefits

  • Enables smart destination marketing and bookable destination campaigns
  • Help LVEPs deliver outcomes highlighted in the De Bois Review
  • Centralises connectivity to booking systems reducing admin and manual allocations
  • Enables development of actionable insights for local visitor economy
  • Enables collection of marketable consumer data to create smarter campaigns
  • Reduced costs and simplified technology through centralised cloud exchange solution
  • Outcomes oriented destination marketing campaigns through real-time measurement
  • Increased value, volume and dispersal of bookings in tourism sector
  • Increases flexibility and choice for tourism authorities and local suppliers
  • Enables sustainable growth of tourism economy through data-driven policymaking

Pricing

£9,000 a licence a month

Service documents

Request an accessible format
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at dan.simmons@txgb.co.uk. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 14

Service ID

4 0 7 9 2 2 3 9 6 1 4 9 3 6 5

Contact

TOURISM EXCHANGE GREAT BRITAIN LIMITED Dan Simmons
Telephone: 0330 223 5050
Email: dan.simmons@txgb.co.uk

Service scope

Software add-on or extension
No
Cloud deployment model
Public cloud
Service constraints
There are no constraints with this service. It is entirely controlled through a cloud based web interface.
System requirements
No specific requirements - Entirely controlled via a web interface.

User support

Email or online ticketing support
Email or online ticketing
Support response times
Our dedicated support team is available during core business hours Monday - Friday 9am to 5pm.

All requests sent by emails will be automatically be raised via our online ticketing system.

All tickets will be responded to within 24 hours in all cases, but with a target of responding within 4 hours.
User can manage status and priority of support tickets
No
Phone support
Yes
Phone support availability
9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
Web chat support
Web chat
Web chat support availability
9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
Web chat support accessibility standard
None or don’t know
How the web chat support is accessible
Web chat is available via the TXGB website. Users can speak directly with a member of the team during core business hours. Tickets can be raised directly within the web chat function.
Web chat accessibility testing
Our current web chat provider is working towards WCAG 2.0 AA compliance and the web chat service has features that align to web content accessibility guidelines. The service is accessible to visually impaired users and differently-abled users. Some high-level accessibility features are: Screen Reader compatibility, keyboard navigation, visual focus indictors and sufficient colour contract in compliance with WCAG 2.0 level AA which requires a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text
Onsite support
Yes, at extra cost
Support levels
At TXGB our Service model can vary depending on the needs of our partner.

As standard, our expert customer success team are at hand to support tourism businesses onboard with the platform and react to any queries, but our Customer Success team will also act in an account management capacity for individual tourism businesses, continue to review platform use and communicating opportunities proactively to optimise the value those businesses can achieve.

Our Customer Success team is supplemented by second line application and infrastructure support teams as required, as well as proactive monitoring and alerting services to manage uptime

Standard service levels for tourism businesses using the platform are based on a Priority 1 to Priority 4 Service agreement, with associated target response and resolution times.
Support available to third parties
Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

Getting started
We offer comprehensive onboarding services to ensure implementation and rollout is successful within your organisation and to your partner network, including:

Onboarding at Destination level:
1) User needs workshops with key stakeholders pre-launch
2) Platform configuration
3) Collaborative approach with marketing and comms teams
4) Early adopter engagement. webinars and workshops with key industry partners as required
5) Combination of training services for industry partners, including onsite and/or online training services
6) Full documentation on system use is available.

Onboarding for your partners:
1) Dedicated remote onboarding support per tourism supplier.
2) Ongoing guidance from customer success to maximise value return
3) Comprehensive learning materials including online knowledge base, FAQs, user guides and 'how-to' videos
Service documentation
Yes
Documentation formats
HTML
End-of-contract data extraction
The TXGB Digital Dashboard offers full reporting for all data on demand, meaning the user can export the full data set to CSV at any point.
End-of-contract process
When a contract ends, access to platform services is removed through closed user accounts.

Where applicable, API tokens related to associated integrations may also be revoked.

Using the service

Web browser interface
Yes
Supported browsers
  • Internet Explorer 11
  • Microsoft Edge
  • Firefox
  • Chrome
  • Safari
Application to install
No
Designed for use on mobile devices
Yes
Differences between the mobile and desktop service
Various features of the TXGB toolset are designed to be compatible with mobile devices. TXGB Dashboards are accessed via a web browser, that is responsive to mobile devices.

For partners that utilise the TXGB free booking page toolkit, they have the option of using a responsive grid option or alternative designs for mobile. Additional features are specifically designed for mobile, such as the capabilities to scan QR codes to redeem bookings using standard camera phones.
Service interface
Yes
User support accessibility
None or don’t know
Description of service interface
TXGB providers a cloud based web portal for various participant types within the TXGB Destination Cloud Platform ecosystem. These include (a) a portal for tourism supplier businesses to review their product offerings, establish partnerships, and view booking data, (b) for a Distributor to access to view which suppliers have partnered with them and manage their profile listing on TXGB, and (c) for Destination partners to view booking data and insights across their region.
Accessibility standards
None or don’t know
Description of accessibility
The platform is primarily an B2B API driven booking exchange and the dashboard service is accessed via a web browser, Whilst this is not currently tested against the WCAG standards, we endeavour to work towards the recommendations outlined in the web content accessibility guidelines and we conduct regular browser compatibility testing.
Accessibility testing
None to date but this can be completed as part of the service delivery.
API
Yes
What users can and can't do using the API
TXGB offers various API driven solutions to ensure the TXGB Destination Cloud Platform is open and connected and continues to grow through new partnerships. The main API use cases are as follows:

Distribution API: For Distribution partners to gain access to live availability, pricing and content for accommodation, tours, events and attractions – every kind of supplier, together in one place for the first time, by connecting to the TXGB Search and Book two way APIs. This makes it possible for DMOs or other online B2B or B2C sales channels to make product listings bookable. There are various opens available for use of this API, ranging from availability searching, booking fulfilment and payment processing.

Connected Technology API: We connect booking systems and aggregators to a wide range of distribution channels – from those in hard-to-reach markets to specialist niches (and everything in between).

Information API: Ability to extract product and booking data via an API feed and use this to extract visitor and booking data and integrate with other organisation data sets to create powerful consumer insights

Our connectivity and engineering teams will work closely with any partner looking to integrate with one of our API services
API documentation
Yes
API documentation formats
HTML
API sandbox or test environment
Yes
Customisation available
Yes
Description of customisation
Destination partners can customise the scope of transaction data they have access to based on location. This is discussed and agreed during the scoping and set up phase of platform deployment

All other customisation at tourism supplier or distributor level is core to the platform use. Including creating campaigns, styling booking pages, defining commission rates etc.

Scaling

Independence of resources
We provide one combined set of resources covering the whole UK. This is automatically scaled at the resource level inside MS Azure. The variation in load/demand comes mainly from tourists using the system to find/book products; their searches may span beyond one destination both in terms of where they are looking, and the coverage of any multi-site product providers (eg: hotel chains). To that extent, independence / separation by destination within the UK is inapplicable.
The service is wholly separated from similar provision in other geographies (AUS, Japan, etc), hosted in different servers in different datacentres/locations.

Analytics

Service usage metrics
Yes
Metrics types
TBC
Reporting types
  • API access
  • Real-time dashboards
  • Regular reports
  • Reports on request

Resellers

Supplier type
Not a reseller

Staff security

Staff security clearance
Other security clearance
Government security clearance
Up to Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS)

Asset protection

Knowledge of data storage and processing locations
Yes
Data storage and processing locations
United Kingdom
User control over data storage and processing locations
No
Datacentre security standards
Managed by a third party
Penetration testing frequency
At least once a year
Penetration testing approach
Another external penetration testing organisation
Protecting data at rest
Other
Other data at rest protection approach
MS Azure Data centre is managed to ISO/IEC 27001:2013 and NIST SP 800-53, and data is encrypted at rest using AES 256
Data sanitisation process
Yes
Data sanitisation type
Explicit overwriting of storage before reallocation
Equipment disposal approach
Complying with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v.30, CAS (Sanitisation) or ISO/IEC 27001

Data importing and exporting

Data export approach
TXGB Dashboard offers full data export of GDPR compliant booking and transaction data. Exports can be made by any user that is logged in to the dashboard and can be exported to CSV or XML format
Data export formats
CSV
Data import formats
Other
Other data import formats
There are no data upload requirements for this service

Data-in-transit protection

Data protection between buyer and supplier networks
TLS (version 1.2 or above)
Data protection within supplier network
TLS (version 1.2 or above)

Availability and resilience

Guaranteed availability
99.5% uptime guarantee per calendar month.
Approach to resilience
Hosted solution provides a highly available solution to achieve 99.5% availability. Locally redundant storage (LRS) is used within an Azure datacentre. This protects the platform against hardware failures within the datacentre, however, does not protect against a datacentre outage. In the event of a datacentre outage (that would be complete outage of one of Microsoft's 2 UK data centres) we have backups to be able to restore in the other. However we do practically note that this would be a severe percentage reduction in the public cloud hosting capability in the UK, so is highly likely to impact many distributor and provider websites as well.
Outage reporting
In the unlikely event of an outage, email communication would be made with all relevant customers - destinations, product providers (eg: hotels & attractions) and any distributors.

Identity and authentication

User authentication needed
Yes
User authentication
Username or password
Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels
Internal technical administration requires VPN access restricted to appropriate staff. The majority of access from Destination Management staff would be through our dedicated administration interface, also used by tourism product providers across the UK. Access levels are controlled by allocation of roles and coverage of either specific products or geographies within the user account management of that interface. Access control changes can only be made by TXGB support staff.
Access restriction testing frequency
At least once a year
Management access authentication
  • 2-factor authentication
  • Dedicated link (for example VPN)

Audit information for users

Access to user activity audit information
Users contact the support team to get audit information
How long user audit data is stored for
At least 12 months
Access to supplier activity audit information
Users contact the support team to get audit information
How long supplier audit data is stored for
At least 12 months
How long system logs are stored for
At least 12 months

Standards and certifications

ISO/IEC 27001 certification
No
ISO 28000:2007 certification
No
CSA STAR certification
No
PCI certification
Yes
Who accredited the PCI DSS certification
Stickman Consulting Pty Ltd
PCI DSS accreditation date
30/01/2024
What the PCI DSS doesn’t cover
PCI Compliance covers the use cases within the TXGB booking exchange platform. The entity that manages this certification is our subcontractor V3 Leisure.
Other digital components such as the TXGB website (i.e. those not part of the core TXGB booking exchange platform) do not require PCI compliance and are therefore not included.
Cyber essentials
Yes
Cyber essentials plus
No
Other security certifications
No

Security governance

Named board-level person responsible for service security
Yes
Security governance certified
No
Security governance approach
We follow a detailed set of internal policies for security governance, data protection and secure management of our devices and service. All staff are fully aware of the details and the policies are regularly reviewed. These include device management and secure configuration, data and information sharing both electronic, verbal and by 'overhearing', managed use of our file storage and other systems, and a detailed understanding on GDPR and how it applies to our complex multi-party scenario, and what can be shared with our partner organisations (non exhaustive list)
Information security policies and processes
All staff are briefed on information security policy covering their actions, their computer configuration and what can be shared and not shared electronically and via any other method (including customer confidentiality).
Allocation of access permissions - to staff, customers, destinations, providers etc - is documented via tickets in our support desk. Access to information is granted on a role / need to know basis internally.
Any indication of incorrect data, or misaccess / misuse of information should be reported through the ticketing helpdesk, and records made of investigations and contacts. If incorrect access or disclosure is identified, this should be raised via normal internal ticket escalation. Escalation includes access to experts in our parent/group companies to assess impact of severe breaches / GDPR implications, including our Data Protection Officer.

Operational security

Configuration and change management standard
Supplier-defined controls
Configuration and change management approach
Changes to any component in the system are tracked through an appropriate development control platform, with details of change request, packaging for deployment, development testing, deployment testing and rollback. Security impact is considered both at development and pre-release testing phases.
Vulnerability management type
Supplier-defined controls
Vulnerability management approach
Critical patching of servers occurs within 7 days. Critical patching of software occurs within 1 month. We subscribe to and review security bulletins from Qualsys (general internet security / encryption in transit) and Microsoft (provider of hosting platform, operating system, database platform)
Protective monitoring type
Undisclosed
Protective monitoring approach
Daily reviews of PCI related logs are carried out. Any incidents are identified and action commenced within a day.
Incident management type
Supplier-defined controls
Incident management approach
User reported incidents (from tourist, provider or destination staff) are tracked through our ticketing help desk and triaged for actual security incidents; Operational monitoring, both our own custom check and those provided by our hosting provider (Azure) feed directly into the technical team. They review for impact and applicability, and take appropriate action, in compliance with our change management procedures.

Secure development

Approach to secure software development best practice
Supplier-defined process

Public sector networks

Connection to public sector networks
No

Social Value

Social Value

Social Value

  • Covid-19 recovery
  • Tackling economic inequality

Covid-19 recovery

The visitor / leisure economy was one of the most badly affected sectors by the COVID 19 pandemic. TXGB is a platform designed to help grow the value, volume and dispersal of tourism in the UK, as a key tool for Destination Management Organisations (DMOs).

DMOs have an important role to play in providing support to local businesses as they recover and build back better.

TXGB was highlighted in the Independent Review of Destination Management Organisations across England, commissioned by DCMS (‘The de Bois Review’) as a key tool that destinations and tourism businesses can adopt to enable opportunities, support growth and drive bookability, online sales and distribution. TXGB’s role in COVID-19 recovery and supporting levelling up was also acknowledged in the Government's response to the independent review and in The Tourism Recovery Plan.

TXGB is a business to business platform enabling digitalisation and collaboration, making it easier for businesses to access more pathways to consumers, informing decision making through better data, and as such is a key tool in driving COVID recovery.

Tackling economic inequality

Historically the inbound tourism economy has had a significant bias towards London and the South East. As such, dispersal of tourism is a key opportunity in tackling economic inequality across the UK.

TXGB is a key tool in tackling tourism dispersal, with several references to this in various policy papers and reviews - such as The Sector Deal for Tourism, Tourism Recovery Plan and the Independent review of Destination Management Organisations across England, commissioned by DCMS.

TXGB is a business to business platform enabling trade, collaboration and innovation - making it easier for regional businesses to connect their products and services to online channels and reach the global consumer.

Pricing

Price
£9,000 a licence a month
Discount for educational organisations
No
Free trial available
No

Service documents

Request an accessible format
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at dan.simmons@txgb.co.uk. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.