Guest Services
News, features and insight into the guest services technology used in hotels and resorts.
ScanINN Shortens Hotel Lines at Motel 6
Check-in lines will be shorter at Motel 6 properties with the implementation of Intellicheck Mobilisa’s ScanINN technology. Guest services representatives simply swipe a guest’s driver’s license to capture information and populate forms. ...
How Smart Devices Will Change Hotel Technology
Over the past 25-plus years of attending the Consumer Electronics Show, I’ve witnessed the birth, and quick demise of many new technology innovations. One item I recall fondly was the first showing of an item called Bluetooth. I was so struck by the possibilities of this new technology that I spent most of CES at the Ericsson booth. I could easily see its various uses beyond mobile phones. I was lucky enough to get in touch with my stockbroker and bought a lot of Ericsson stock. The rest is history. ...
Tech Bytes Jan. 15, 2012
A roundup of hotel technology news and notes....
Hotels a Focus at Digital Signage Expo
The Digital Signage Expo returns to the Las Vegas Convention Center March 6-8 with more than 180 exhibitors, 100 educators and 32 seminars expected, including two focusing entirely on the hotel industry. ...
New Integration Provides Efficient, Safer Elevator System
After being closed for more than six years, the Hyatt Regency New Orleans reopened on Oct. 19 after a massive $275-million redevelopment that has doubled the property’s meeting space to 200,000 square feet. It also became the first property in North America to integrate RFID guestroom keycards with the elevator system, combining ...
Should You Be Charging Your Guests for High-Speed Internet Access?
To charge or not charge for HSIA, that is the question. The time is very near when hotels will be forced to purchase a lot more bandwidth from their Internet providers, even though competition will require them to offer WiFi to guests for free, or on a tiered-fee system. While WiFi service might be free for a basic level of use, like e-mail and casual Internet browsing, fees will rise in increments for higher levels of data use, especially for video streaming. ...
Hampton Flexes Its Hotel Marketing Muscle
For Phil Cordell, innovation is a guidepost. As global head of focused service, Hampton brand management, Hilton Worldwide, it’s up to Cordell to execute the company’s elastic vision. The 15-story, 221-room Hampton Inn & Suites Miami Brickell Downtown embodies it....
Hotel Wayfinding Interacts with Smartphones
Wayfinding screens in hotels are becoming widely accepted as the preferred method of showing floor plans, guiding guests to destinations on the property, revealing session locations for conferences and opening new avenues of engaging guests. But until recently, guests still had to rely on memory as they walked away from the maps on digital displays toward their destination within the property. ...
Tech Bytes Sept. 1, 2011
Roundup of hotel technology news and notes....
Vendor News Sept. 1, 2011
Roundup of hotel vendor news and notes....
Tech Bytes HITEC Wrap
Highlights from HITEC...
Technology Handbook 2011
The Technology Handbook is a catalog of information on the products and services offered by vendors serving the lodging industry. You’ll find an index with 10 major categories of hotel-related technology products and services. In each, we list all the companies who responded to our survey, and then you’ll find a directory listing each company in alphabetical order, including the categories of products they offer, where they are located, a phone number and their website....
Education Key to Preventing Credit Card Fraud
Last year, the hospitality industry became the most targeted industry for data breaches according to Trustwave's Global Security Report 2010. The situation has grown in such a way that recently, one of the largest hospitality industry associations put forward guidance on how to take simple steps to secure payment card data within the industry....
Products April 2011
Innovations in hotel products and services....
Security of Guest Data Worries Hotel Technology Executives
The Hotel Technology Next Generation North American members meeting held in San Diego last month gave attendees an inside look at what keeps the industry’s top C-level technology executives awake at night. IT leaders from Hyatt, Starwood, Marriott and other companies put the spotlight on what is required from technology suppliers to earn their keep. ...
Digital Signage Expo A Draw for Hoteliers
The Digital Signage Expo last week drew a record number of exhibitors, registrations and offered the most educational opportunities in its eight-year history. The event held at the Las Vegas Convention Center covered a broad spectrum ...
Tech Bytes Jan. 15, 2011
A roundup of tech news....
Digital Signage Expo Offers Track for Hoteliers
More than 4,000 attendees and 180 exhibitors are expected at the 8th annual Digital Signage Expo that returns to Sin City Feb. 22-25 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. It is the world’s largest trade show and conference covering digital signage, interactive technology and out-of-home networks. Multiple panels and sessions will appeal to hotel owners and operators, including several with moderators and panelists who work in the hospitality industry....
