Mr. Sullivan said women now account for 40 percent of the business-travel market, compared with less than 15 percent a decade ago.

Avis Rent a Car Systems, reacting to a sluggish business-travel market, is shifting its focus to leisure travelers.

Now some of those technologies are re-emerging and trying to get traction in the business-travel market as general demand for high-speed Web and e-mail services continues unabated.

Though it was commissioned by Wyndham, the survey is an objective, noncommercial look at the overall business-travel market for women.

On the other hand, as noted here last week, there is the rapidly growing business-travel market of small companies, independent contactors and others who can't negotiate volume discounts.

That suggests that Continental is winning a greater share of the softening business-travel market, which is crucial to airline profit.

But a bankruptcy filing by a carrier as big and as dominant as United in the domestic and international business-travel market would be unprecedented, industry experts said.

China is now the fourth-largest business-travel market in the world, American Express said.

But in the boom times, some hub airports chose to rely more than others on the top-drawer business-travel market represented by full-fare carriers.

But I'd also keep an eye on America West, which appears to be paying more attention than the others to what the business-travel market insists it needs.