Shippers are discovering that in today’s ever-changing liner industry the question is not where your cargo is but who is carrying it. Furthermore, the carriers are paying more attention to who the port operator is together with the location of the port. As a result, port operators should take into account those shippers’ and carriers’ desires, improve their handling services by vertical and horizontal co-operations to increase customers’ satisfactions and loyalties as much as possible by means of restructuring their service processes, management information systems, etc. One of the further research directions could be the social status effect on the cooperation among the port operators. Similar to the effects on shipping alliances this factor could affect the relationship, negotiation and development of port co-operations as well.
