Amstelveen – 2005-02-12

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is in the process of launching its fully revamped website in 70 countries, offering customers greater accessibility, speed and simplicity. Revamped sites have already gone live in various Anglophone countries. Today sees the launch of the new Dutch-language site, accessible via www.klm.nl and www.klm.com.

The site overhaul is part of KLM's broader objective to achieve a global online booking score of 40% in fiscal 2007/08. KLM's current score is 12%. More than half of these customers make use of internet check-in.

The new KLM site is designed to ensure swift booking and speedy access to other online facilities such as internet check-in, hotel reservation, and car rental. The new site is also easier to navigate for business travelers and other corporate customers. Site rollout is expected to be completed in all 70 countries in early 2006.

The Lost Boys agency in Amsterdam spent 18 months working on the new site. The agency was also involved in two previous site overhauls. "KLM has always been a pioneer in the field of online services," says Roel Faulhaber, creative director at Lost Boys. "They were the first European airline to introduce internet check-in, and they have kept developing over the years."

Bart Vos, senior vice president - KLM E-Business: "KLM is continually investing in customer ease and satisfaction. The sheer diversity of our website makes it the ideal place for KLM passengers to do business with us. KLM is fully aware of the unprecedented possibilities of the internet. That is why we continue to invest in new internet technology to achieve our target of 40% online booking."

To promote the new website, KLM has developed an email marketing campaign based on the party game "musical chairs." Site visitors can play an online game that involves selecting a seat. They stand a chance of winning an inflatable KLM armchair with their name on it. KLM is also promoting the site with the aid of a demo video on the homepage. The video takes visitors on a virtual tour of the site's many new features.

For further information:
KLM Media Relations, Youssef Eddini, +31 (0)20 649 4545.