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(CNN) --Buying holidays on the Internet with flights, hotel rooms and car hire bundled together at attractive prices is the latest trend.
Consumers are going online to select each component of their self-package holiday, priced at tour operator rates.
The same concept, known in the trade as "dynamic packaging," could soon change the face of executive travel.
"In the last 12 months it has been a growing phenomenon for consumers. It will come to business travel soon." Scott Blume, CEO of travel portal Zuji.com told CNN.
Already bosses of small to medium enterprises have embraced online booking for point-to-point air travel and hotel bookings using Web sites like Expedia and Travelocity.
And double-digit growth in online booking is forecast for the future, according to travel research company PhoCusWright.
In the U.S. by 2004 the market is predicted to be worth $51.2 billion and in Asia, $8 billion.
In the corporate sector growth is likely to come from smaller businesses, who have less rigid travel policies, less clout in terms of purchasing power and fewer ties with agents, according to Zuji.
Cost savings, flexibility and transparency, as well as control over spending are the main reasons cited by business travelers for booking online.
"Dynamic packaging will probably start with air, then hotel, cars, then other things that are unique to specific country or cultural markets," says Blume.
As Web sites evolve for consumers, executives can eventually expect the same sort of sophistication.
However, managing the corporate market is more complex since executives tend to have unique travel requirements.
"Currently, the technology is closer to being able to fulfill this in the U.S., but not yet in the Asia-Pacific. It's very early days for all players," explains Blume.
The biggest challenge for players in the market is brand loyalty, since people tend to shop around for the best deals.
There is even talk of supplying travel agents with the same software, so they can book packages for corporate clients.
Dynamic packaging may have the potential to degrade the close relationships that airlines and hotels have built up with their corporate clients, since price and online anonymity become the key factors.
However, advocates such as Zuji say that it will allow these same companies to fill empty rooms and seats as components of cheaper packages, without having to disclose specific prices.
