The following Frequently Asked Questions will provide a further insight into ATDW’s distribution services and information on the wider Distribution Network. If you have further questions please contact the ATDW Distribution Team.
What is an ATDW Distributor?
An ATDW Distributor is typically an organisation that publishes ATDW’s quality tourism content via their digital channel (e.g. website or mobile app). All distributors of ATDW must be licensed and approved by ATDW’s Distribution Team to be able to access and publish the content.
What are the benefits of becoming an ATDW distributor?
There are many benefits of becoming a licensed ATDW distributor. These include:
How can I become a licensed ATDW distributor?
The best way to become a licensed distributor of ATDW is to register online via the Distribution Centre’s registration page here: The ATDW Distribution Team will then review your application whilst you are in your free 30 day trial period. Once approved, you will then be promoted to select and pay for a package that suits your needs. Should you need to contact the Distribution Team at any time please contact [email protected]
How many distributors have successfully integrated with ATDW content?
Over 250+ distributors are currently integrated with ATDW and are publishing content live via their digital channels. See a full list of live ATDW distributors here.
What is the ATLAS Web Service (API)?
The ATLAS web service (Australian Tourism Location Aware Search) is ATDW’s latest web service that provides a highly flexible geospatial interface for searching ATDW products in an efficient manner for REALTIME distribution.
What is the Widget?
The Widget is a very useful application with specific functionality that can be installed within your very own web page. The widget just occupies a portion of your webpage (like a small window) and displays ATDW content (to your own choosing) in a simple list view.
What kind of technical support can ATDW provide?
ATDW’s Customer Connections Team are here to support all distributors with their technical integration queries. The Customer Connections Team are available from 9:00am – 5:00pm Australian Eastern Standard Time (Monday – Friday) and can be contacted at [email protected]
How do I update the ATDW content on my website?
For Realtime distributors using the ATLAS web service, updates will occur as they happen automatically. For batch distributors, it is strongly advised to update the content daily, as anywhere between 150-300 product listings get up-dated every day, so it is vital that distributors display the most relevant content for your consumers. If you use the DELTA_DATE parameter to return only the recently updated and new products since your last product call, it will help distributors achieve this.
What are the response times for a typical call to the National ATDW database using either web service?
The ATLAS web service takes less than 1 second to return content once clicked on and called for by the consumer. A Query Products call takes between 1 to 2 seconds.
What is the difference between a Real Time and Batch distributor?
A Real Time distributor actually uses a Real Time interface (usually via integration with the ATLAS web service) that instantaneously receives changes to product records when a consumer clicks on an ATDW listing to view it. Thus there is no need to populate a locally stored database.
A Batch distributor actually populates the content in their own ‘local database” after taking a scheduled feed from the National ATDW database. Systems are put in place to allow content to then be sourced on the website from the populated local database.
What platforms can I write my website in when using ATDW?
The ATLAS web service is a RESTful interface to allow for easy integration and uses XML and JSON when returning the result set and is flexible with almost all platforms and programming languages.
How often does the XML Schema change?
Changes to the XML schema are rarely made. Minor changes are made to the ATLAS web services from time to time to improve the usability of the service. Changes to the web services affecting functionality, will receive written notice to all distributors prior to cutover. ATDW recommends that any implementation of the ATLAS API should be loosely coupled. That is, the integration interface should be developed with minimal assumptions between the sending/receiving parties, thus reducing the risk that a change in one application/module will force a change in other applications/modules.
Am I required to provide ATDW with statistics on page and product views?
Yes. ATDW requires all distributors who are currently publishing ATDW content to embed Web Beacons into their respective website pages and digital channels. This is to ensure ease of statistics gathering in a more automated approach. This is done by implementing Web beacons which will replace any and all other tools that were used previously with providing web metric stats / page views to ATDW. It’s Important to note that the Web Beacon is a transparent 1×1 pixel and therefore will not affect the look and feel of your web application in any way. Click Here to view the Instructions on how access and embed the Web Beacons.
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Why isn't my widget showing any tourism listings?
Firstly, check the widget configuration wizard to see if all your search filters (categories, location and language) are set correctly. Please note that certain filter combinations may not give you a search result. When that happens, the widget may not return any product listings.
The widget is displayed differently on my website than the configuration wizard.
If the widget is looking drastically different from what’s shown in the configuration wizard, you should check the following:
Can I have more than on widget on the same web page?
You can have multiple widgets on the same web page as long as they are not the same widget. If you’ve created three different widgets in the widget configuration screen, then you can have three different widgets on the same page. You can’t, however, put the same widget multiple times on the same web page.
Can I make ATDW content bookable on my website/app?
Yes you can. There are a number of options available for online bookability.
You can access the booking ID’s which are stored in the listings to connect to our preferred booking partners. Please contact Distribution Team for more information on this: [email protected]
Lastly, should you wish to build your own booking / ticketing system and bolt this component on alongside the saleable ATDW product listings that you publish – you can do this also.