His competitors were also more successful with computerized reservations and in dominating the "distribution side" through travel agents, Mr. Burr said.

But for the airline travel-booking world, dominated until recent years by big proprietary computerized reservations systems that were originally molded by the airlines, life now becomes more complicated.

Nine Arab airlines have asked a British company to help them start a global network of computerized reservations for travel agents in their countries, an Arab civil aviation group said on Monday.

They include fares averaging 65 percent less than those of competing airlines; the latest computerized reservations and check-in systems, and 24 channels of live satellite television at every seat.

Over the summer, however, some of the functions of travel agents' computerized reservations systems have been popping up on service providers' World Wide Web sites.

The increases were not publicly announced but were entered into computerized reservation and fare systems, where travel agents spotted them.

Companies The House voted to curb the ability of American and United to dominate the airline industry through their computerized reservations systems, which are used by travel agents.

All fares that are now sold on Orbitz, which is owned by five major airlines, will become available on the proprietary computerized reservations systems used by travel agents.

Parliament will be interested to learn that computerized reservation systems are thought to be the world's largest users of computerized services, and offer instant access to the services of more than 140 000 travel agents throughout the world.

The department said the agents' information came largely from one of four computerized reservation and information services run by the airlines.