• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Tech

KLM is the First Airline to Start Using Facebook Messenger

By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
March 30, 2016, 11:08 AM ET
Bloomberg via Getty Images

Facebook’s popular chat app Messenger has signed on its first airline, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, as the social network aims to turn the app into a one-stop shop for commerce, transportation, customer service, and more.

KLM flyers will be able to automatically receive itineraries, flight updates, check-in notifications, boarding passes, rebook flights, and communicate with customer service all from Facebook Messenger.

The Dutch carrier isn’t the first business to start using Facebook to connect with the app’s 800 million users. At the social networking giant’s developer conference in 2015, the company revealed plans for turning Messenger into a tool for businesses to communicate and potentially sell to users.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Hyatt Hotels, for example, started testing Messenger out last year for customer service requests. Instead of calling Hyatt’s customer service number via phone, hotel guests can search for Hyatt within Messenger and start chatting with a representative. Retailer Everlane is also using Messenger as a way to update customers with shipping times, receipts, and more. Ride-sharing companies Uber and Lyft have started allowing Messenger users to order rides from directly within the chat app.

The social network is taking a page from popular Asian messaging apps like Tencent-owned WeChat, which lets Chinese consumers buy items, order rides, and transfer money to Facebook friends. The idea is to let users do more within the app so they never need to leave it to shop, check on an airline reservation, request an Uber ride, or book a restaurant reservation.

Airlines, however, could be a major use case for Messenger, according to Facebook’s vice president for messaging products, David Marcus. Marcus told USA Today that approximately 80% of passengers on planes traveling within the United States have the Messenger app installed on their smartphones.

For more on Facebook, watch this video:

For now, Facebook said that it is being selective with businesses who can use Messenger to communicate with customers. The Menlo Park, Calif.-based company is reportedly interested in starting to allow retailers to let customers pay for items in stores through Messenger.

That doesn’t mean Facebook has ambitions for these transactions to formulate a new revenue stream as Marcus told USA Today that the world’s largest social network isn’t focused on making money from Messenger just yet.

Still, commerce within the app could help create an opportunity to sell advertising. Facebook is also reportedly planning to start slipping ads in messages between users and businesses by the end of June.

About the Author
By Leena Rao
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Jensen Huang
SuccessProductivity
The shaky job market won’t last: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is ‘fairly confident’ that AI will increase productivity and hiring—but there’s a catch
By Preston ForeJanuary 14, 2026
53 minutes ago
Illustration of Google logo and Gemini open on a smartphone.
AIGoogle
Google connects Gemini to users’ emails and photos in push to build a personal assistant
By Beatrice NolanJanuary 14, 2026
1 hour ago
Future of WorkColleges and Universities
Why a college degree is still worthwhile—and the 3 things it can teach you that AI can’t do
By Jake AngeloJanuary 14, 2026
2 hours ago
man with glasses stares into camera
CryptoCryptocurrency
Meld raises $7 million to integrate stablecoin networks, build the ‘Visa for crypto’
By Carlos GarciaJanuary 14, 2026
2 hours ago
newsom
PoliticsTaxes
‘You are really playing with fire with this one’: California billionaires tax ignites, pitting labor unions and voters against tech execs
By MIchael R. Blood, Michael Liedtke and The Associated PressJanuary 14, 2026
3 hours ago
engineer
Commentaryengineering
China graduates 1.3 million engineers per year, versus just 130,000 in the U.S. We need AI to bridge the gap
By Paul Eremenko and Ashish SrivastavaJanuary 14, 2026
3 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Success
Despite his $2.6 billion net worth, MrBeast says he’s having to borrow cash and doesn’t even have enough money in his bank account to buy McDonald’s
By Emma BurleighJanuary 13, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Tech
Elon Musk asked people to upload their medical data to X so his AI company could learn to interpret MRIs and CT scans
By Sasha RogelbergJanuary 11, 2026
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
AI
'Godfather of AI' says the technology will create massive unemployment and send profits soaring — 'that is the capitalist system'
By Jason MaJanuary 12, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
The longer the Supreme Court delays its tariff decision, the better it is for President Trump
By Jim EdwardsJanuary 13, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Newsletters
The oil CEO who stood up to Trump is a follower of the disciplined 'Exxon way' and has a history of blunt statements
By Jordan BlumJanuary 13, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Future of Work
'Microshifting,' an extreme form of hybrid working that breaks work into short, non-continuous blocks, is on the rise
By Nick LichtenbergJanuary 13, 2026
24 hours ago

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.