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You could change some optional settings now too, like translations for the reservation category or the color of the reservation category. The last one isn’t that important since linear contracted rate reservations are never shown in the planning chart.

Configuration of a linear distribution channel (first-time use)

If you are setting up a new distribution channel for use with linear for the first time, follow this path to create a new distribution channel: 

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1. Click Create distribution channel

2. In the following modal window, please enter the following data:

   1. Parent: the parent distribution channel, useful to be able to inherit settings

   2. Name: free type field for the name, important to recognise the channel. This will also be used on invoices.

   3. Code: short language-independent identifier. You can choose the code. It needs to be unique and shouldn’t contain any whitespaces.

   4. Description: (optional) free description of the channel, place to be able to include details if necessary.

   5. Currency: choose the mandatory currency

   6. Type: Choose the type of the distribution channel. Please note that if you want to use the channel for linear agreements, it needs to be either 'Touroperator' or 'Comité d’entreprise'

      1. Once one of these types is selected, you can select the option to configure the channel to be of the type linear. Don’t forget to enable it, this can only be done during the creation of the distribution channel.

   7. Allotment use: As soon as you have selected the type linear, it will automatically select ‘Book only from allotment’ since that is the only combination allowed.

   8. Select Next step

      

3. Select applicable rate types for this distribution channel
   Please note; that this will be the rate type that will be used for creating the reservations for customers, so this will commonly be a rate type that will have 0 rates since the stays are paid as part of the agreement instead of per reservation.

4. Configure inventory for the new distribution channel
   It would be up to you to decide how to configure the inventory, all the options offered in the workflow are supported for the linear channel as well. However, best practice would be to create a distribution channel group ‘Linear’ and add all the linear DCs in that group. If that distribution channel group is already added to the representation of (some, all, many) accommodation types, that would mean the suggested approach for adding another Linear channel is to use the distribution channel group to configure the inventory for the new channel. This would avoid a lot of manual work.
   Please note; that adding inventory for a linear channel would not make it automatically bookable since a linear channel can only book from previously bought inventory. And previously bought inventory will be made available by adding allotment for the channel. Adding this inventory will make it possible to add the allotment. It will therefore not hurt to configure more accommodation types from the beginning, that will make you more flexible when actually configuring the allotment.
   

   

5. Select reservation categories
   Now it is important to select at least two categories here; one linear and one regular for the guest stays.

6. Press finish to create the distribution channel
   You are now done, but please note that depending on the selections made in the inventory step, it might take some time to fully complete the process. It will run in the background though so you don’t need to wait for this.

Add (invoice) address for a distribution channel

Since linear contracted reservations won’t have a customer, the distribution channel details will be used to send the confirmation or invoice to. To make sure that this is possible, please configure the address of the distribution channel. The NF525 invoice will automatically be sent to the invoice address and if that is not configured, it will fall back to the (normal) address.

Steps to take:

1. Go to Channel Manager → Distribution channels

2. Open the distribution channel

3. Click on the ‘Address’ button

4. A side panel will show;

   1. Click ‘Create new address’ for a new mailing address and follow the steps

   2. Click the toggle button next to ‘Configure address’ in the Invoice address section to configure an invoice address

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