Gilbertsville, PA (October 9, 2023)  ̶   Gateway Ticketing Systems, Inc., a global leader in attraction ticketing and online booking solutions, is pleased to announce the launch of the newest version of its Galaxy Connect™ platform with support for the inaugural release of the OCTO messaging specification. 

The OCTO Core Specification V1, released September 26, 2023, is an API specification with standardized field names, properties, and endpoints, and offers a new way for reservation systems, distributors, resellers, channel managers, and operators to save technical resources and time in connecting and communicating with each other. 

Gateway Ticketing Systems’ commitment to enhancing the travel experience for consumers, distributors, and attractions by simplifying the booking process has taken a significant leap forward with this integration. In supporting the new OCTO specification, Galaxy Connect enables venues to create API connections that work with any OCTO-compliant trading partner to share product catalogs, check inventory availability, and transmit ticket bookings.   

Galaxy Connect offers an extensive list of attractions, museums, zoos, aquariums and other ticketed venues, connecting travelers with unique experiences and adventures in destinations around the world. With this integration, Galaxy Connect users gain easy access to additional distributors, all easily integrated into their existing ticketing platform. 

Key benefits of the Galaxy Connect and OCTO Travel API integration include: 

1. Expanded Choice: Suppliers can choose from a diverse array of distributors and online travel agents, all within a single, flexible distribution platform that supports both the native Galaxy Connect API and now the OCTO Core API for messaging integration. 

2. Real-Time Availability: Access to live ticket inventory ensures that travelers can secure their bookings at the most convenient times, eliminating the need for manual coordination. 

3. Effortless Booking: Streamlined booking and payment processes make it easy for travelers to plan their itineraries and make reservations on the spot. 

4. Global Reach: Galaxy Connect users now have expanded distribution capabilities with even more opportunities to reach travelers in markets worldwide. 

5. Reliability: Galaxy Connect’s robust technology ensures that attractions can trust in the accuracy and reliability of their bookings. 

"We are excited to bring OCTO Travel API into our Galaxy Connect ecosystem," said Michael Andre, President and CEO of Gateway Ticketing Systems. "This integration aligns perfectly with our mission of simplifying distribution and providing attractions with unparalleled options and convenience in working with their choice of third-party distributors. With OCTO, we are now connecting our customers to even more distribution channels worldwide. " 

With this integration, Galaxy Connect continues to set the standard for innovation in the ticketing industry, offering a one-stop solution for attractions to manage their complete ticketing and booking solution with an end-to-end view of the guest journey. 

“Being part of the effort to ensure open connectivity for suppliers and distributors has been an incredible experience,” said Tom Chiarella, Executive Vice President and Head of Product for Gateway Ticketing Systems and Vice President on the OCTO Board of Directors. “Our Galaxy Connect platform upgrade greatly complements the recent release of the OCTO specification, bringing performance, scalability, and now OCTO interoperability together. We continue to be dedicated to offering a top-notch connectivity platform for our supplier operators.” 

For more information on OCTO, please visit https://www.octo.travel/ and to learn more about Galaxy Connect and Gateway Ticketing Systems, Inc., please visit www.gatewayticketing.com. 

About Gateway Ticketing Systems®, Inc.
Gateway Ticketing Systems®, Inc. is the world leader in ticketing and guest experience solutions for the attractions industry for 35 years. Their robust Galaxy® solution integrates ticketing, admission control, resource management, group sales, online ticketing sales, retail, food and beverage, membership/pass/donor management, plus reporting and CRM. Gateway also provides strategic consultation, service, and support for attractions throughout North America and worldwide. Gateway serves the global community from their headquarters in Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania and offices in Calgary, Canada, and central London, as well as through partner resellers across the world. To learn more about Gateway Ticketing Systems, please visit www.gatewayticketing.com.

About Galaxy Connect™:  
Galaxy Connect™ is the latest extension of the Galaxy product suite providing a next-generation integration platform for suppliers and distributors to sell mobile gate-ready tickets. The single integration point for both suppliers and distributors reduces ongoing integration work, removes costly voucher processes, and increases sales through a community of suppliers and distributors. 

A technology platform that connects attractions with distributors and online travel agencies to enable the selling mobile gate-ready tickets through real-time integration. Galaxy Connect is an innovative solution that simplifies the integration of attractions and online travel agencies, saving money and valuable IT resource time. 

A cloud-based platform, Galaxy Connect offers numerous benefits to attraction venues and online travel agencies/third-party distributors: 

• Save costly IT resource time – connect with any number of online travel agencies and/or attractions with only one integration. 
• Eliminate the time-consuming voucher process – you can save countless hours of manual processing by selling live tickets. 
• Reduce front-gate lines while enhancing the guest experience – guests arriving with a live ticket can enjoy direct-to-gate admission. 
• Sell resource- and capacity-managed events – avoid sellout situations that are stressful for your operations team to handle and lead to negative guest experiences.

For more information, visit https://www.galaxyconnect.com/  

About OCTO:  
OCTO Standards NP, Inc is a member based not for profit organization whose mission is to simplify connectivity for the tours, activities, and attractions industry.  OCTO actively works with its member companies and the industry to identify and resolve connectivity challenges by creating standardized messaging specifications that can be used by trading partners to simplify their API connections.  The OCTO Specification is provided to the industry as open source so as to remove some of the commercial and technical barriers associated with adopting a new standard. Any organization is free to use the specification to create their own APIs at no cost and with no obligation to OCTO.  To learn more, visit https://www.octo.travel/ 

Trademarks: 
Galaxy Connect is a trademark and Gateway Ticketing Systems is a registered trademark of Gateway Ticketing Systems, Inc. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.