قياس دور تكنولوجيا المعلومات في قطاع السياحة بسلطنة عمان دراسة تحليلية

  The  study  aimed  to  detect  the  role  of   information   technology  in  the development of the tourism sector in the Sultanate of Oman by identifying the advantages of applying information technology in the tourism sector in general and   studying    the   characteristics   and   indicators   of   the    application   of information  technology   in    the  tourism  sector  in  the  Sultanate  of  Oman. Therefore    measuring   the   technological     applications   rate   used   in   the development  of  the  tourism  sector  in the Sultanate of Oman. Also, the study intended   to   identify   the   challenges   facing  the  application  of information technology in the development of the tourism sector in the Sultanate of Oman, and   recognise  the  available  opportunities  that  would  encourage the use of information   technology   in  the   improvement  of   the  tourism   sector in the Sultanate of Oman.
The main study  tool  was  represented  in  a  review  list  that  included all the elements  of  the  application of information technology in the tourism sector. This   list  consist  of   four  aspects: institutional and  organizational  structure, legislative and  legal structure,  human structure, and  eventually  information infrastructure. The most notably results of the study were the following:
1- The   benefiting  from  the  utilization  of  information  technology in the tourism  sector  plays  an  active  part in the development of the tourism sector. Thus the means of modern technology have led to many changes in  the  tourism  sector over-all, particularly with regard to the behaviour of the  tourist  and  his acceptability of the usage of those applications in the   field   of   travel   and   tourism. Together   with  the  modification of tourism companies  in  terms  of  policies, procedures, services and other aspects   that   led  to  the   emergence   of    electronic    entities   and intermediaries. It also has  created  new electronic  marketing  channels  through  social media, websites and smart phone applications.
2- There are some indicators of the application of information technology in the tourism  sector  in Oman. These  indicators are represented in the existence of parties who provide consulting and advice to all relevant to  help  them  make  the  decisions,  and  the  eagerness  of   the  academic institutions  specialized  in  tourism  to  propose study plans that include courses  related  to  information  technology.  In  addition  to  the use of Internet  applications  and  e-commerce  in  fields  related to tourism (aviation services, tourist transport, visitor services, investor services, etc.).
3- The outcomes showed that the rate of using information technology in the tourism sector in the Sultanate of Oman reached methodically 43% only, Which is a weak percentage at the level of the Sultanate of Oman which has many elements and tourism factors that qualify it for tourism development if information technology was used in the tourism sector systematically.
4- The  study  found  that  there  are  a  number  of  challenges  facing  the application  and  use  of information  technology  in  the Omani  tourism sector  systematically,  the most  important  of  which is the challenge of financial  allocations  and financial  support. Whereas  small and medium enterprises  in  the  tourism  sector  suffer from this aspect because their revenue are limited and do not help them to spend to adopt information technology. As well as creating a national law that includes all aspects of e-commerce  transactions  and  applications  of  information  technology in  the  tourism  sector  in  particular, also  building scientifically qualified and trained manpower consistent with the ongoing change in the field of information  technology. Finally,  finding  new patterns of institutions and agencies to activate tourism, which operates through advanced websites on the internet.
The study came out with a set of recommendations and suggestions that establish  a  general  vision  to  activate  the  tools and applications made available by the  information  technology and thus create an appropriate environment for e-tourism  that  will contribute  to  the  development  of the tourism sector in the Sultanate of Oman.