STB Launches Tourism Information & Services Hub, Giving Businesses Access To Over 100 APIs
Updated: Dec 19, 2023
Singapore continues to leverage technology as it adopts new ways to digitally transform visitor experiences and meet the demands of today's travellers.
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) launched the Tourism Information & Services Hub (TIH), giving tourism businesses access to over 100 Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). The new software services would allow tourism businesses to use information from TIH in real time for their websites or mobile applications.
According to STB, the plug-and-play nature of APIs would allow businesses to integrate them into their respective digital channels easily. Furthermore, once the software services are integrated, they'll extract and contribute content from TIH automatically and instantly, which saves businesses from needing to devote time and resources to performing these tasks manually.
For those unaware, APIs are a set of formalised tools that give two or more computer programs the ability to communicate with each other. They allow for greater customisation in delivering information and services, allowing users to personalise apps and websites to suit different customers' needs.
There are different types of APIs available on TIH. Content Provider, for example, allows applications to contribute products and experiences on TIH. Content User, meanwhile, will enable applications to extract content from the 11 categories on TIH. For example, Media Provider contributes images and videos while Media User extracts them. Furthermore, Travel Software Services encompasses different services, including Recommendation Engine, Enhanced Navigation Engine, Smart Itinerary Planner and Visit Singapore Account. Lastly, Third Party Information Sources are ancillary services to enrich the information available to visitors.
To obtain an API key, tourism businesses must first sign in to their TIH Business Account. After which, they must go to "My Setting". They'll have to check the option "I would like to have an API Key" at the bottom of the page. They must then click "Save" and wait for an email with the requested API key.
The launch of TIH is part of STB's initiatives to accelerate digital transformation in the tourism industry, which was kickstarted during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
STB launched the Tourism Information & Services Hub (TIH), giving tourism businesses access to over 100 Application Programming Interfaces (APIs).
The new software services would allow tourism businesses to use information from TIH in real time for their websites or mobile applications.
The APIs can extract and contribute content from TIH automatically and instantly, which saves businesses from needing to devote time and resources to performing these tasks manually.