JUNE 2 - 15, 2004
TOP O' THE NEWS
- Interest in Remote-Hosted PMSs increases
A few years back "ASPs" were the hot new technology. The concept of having your software applications hosted by a third party Application Service Provider on a server at a remote site seemed really attractive given the newly-widespread availability of Internet communications and Web browsers on everyone's PC. Reality set in, of course; the Internet links weren't always reliable after all, and their speed was certainly variable enough to give one pause for thought. Concerns over access to one's data and the general security of the systems were strong, even though they were probably safer and better supported than many a hotel-located system. The extra costs of having the system hosted by a third party, rather than the vendor or the hotel company itself, also made the economics debatable.
But the advantages of reduced hardware and support costs at the property level combined with useful centralized data consolidation and analysis have kept the idea alive. This is especially true in the wider generic context of "remote hosted systems" which, while having the server located at a central point, keep it at the vendor's site or at a hotel chain's head office with the local access over any suitable communications network, not just the Internet. MICROS-Fidelio in particular has persisted with the concept, both with hosting Opera systems for hotel chains overseas and with clients such as Wyndham hosting it themselves in the US.
Now there seems to be renewed interest in the approach, possibly driven by the much wider availability of reliable broadband Internet links and the adoption of more powerful and universal systems links through Web services development tools. Visual One has just announced its new V1Net PMS (see below), Ramesys has recently received orders from GL Resorts and a Best Western for the ASP system it brought from the UK a few years back, Pegasus is completing the re-write of its pioneering PegasusCentral ASP system, and Northwind has landed several multi-property deals for the centrally-hosted version of its Maestro PMS. It's not going to be the right solution for everyone, but the time may definitely be here to take another look at whether it's right for you.
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PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
- Ted Horner inducted into HFTP's Technology Hall of Fame
- SynXis hires six new managers
Ted Horner has been selected as the 2004 HFTP International Hospitality Technology Hall of Fame inductee. Mr. Horner was selected for promoting the use and expansion of hospitality technology in Australia for over 20 years, the last 15 with his own consultancy practice. A founding member of the Hospitality Industry Technology Association (HITA), he created the first ever conference and exhibition on technology in the hospitality industry in Australia, launched Australia's first portal site specializing in hospitality technology, is a regular speaker at conferences worldwide, and has written hundreds of articles on technology.
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SynXis announced the hire of six new managers:
In Amsterdam:
- Iilonka Bagi, senior account manager, previously with Worldspan.
- Ilaria Triggiani, senior account manager, previously with Intercontinental Hotels and Chairperson for HEDNA's EMEA chapter.
In Denver:
- Andrew Smith, account manager, previously with Pegasus Solutions and Cheap Tickets.
- Jolene Bader, account manager, an ARDA Registered Resort Professional (RRP) with 15 years experience in the hospitality industry.
- Chris Flear, account manager, with 16 years of experience in the travel industry, most recently as a strategic distribution manager with Sceptre.
In Dallas:
- Adam Burleson, consortia program manager, previously marketing and brand revenue manager for TravelCLICK Houston.
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PROPERTY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
- Visual One announces new Web-based PMS, V1Net
- Emerald Hills Resort orders Ramesys' ImagInn Platinum PMS
- NORTHWIND releases multi-property yielded GDS interface for Maestro
- NORTHWIND terminates North American distributorship agreements
- Marriott piloting NCR's EasyPoint Xpress check-in kiosk in three properties
- Wilshire Grand in Los Angeles implementing MICROS' OPERA PMS
Visual One Systems announced its new V1Net property management system. A completely new system based on Microsoft .Net technology, V1Net is targeted at hotel chains and management companies looking to maintain all their properties' data on a central server, as well as at individual hotels wanting lower-cost but modern technology for their front office operations. V1Net's feature set includes front office, reservations, package plans, group management, guest history, housekeeping, travel agency commissions and (via Comtrol) interfaces to other systems. (www.visualonesystems.com)
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The 119-room Emerald Hills Resort in Florien, LA has ordered Ramesys' ImagInn Platinum property management system. (www.emeraldhillsresort.com, www.us.ramesys.com)
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NORTHWIND has released what it terms as hospitality's first multi-property yielded GDS interface, linking its Maestro PMS seamlessly to the GDSs with yield-management-based control over rate and room availability.
NORTHWIND has terminated its North American distributorship agreements with Ramesys and InnFinite Systems, and is now the sole supplier of its Maestro PMS Suite in North America. NORTHWIND also added two new distributors in the United Kingdom, Maitre D and Quadranet Systems, replacing Ramesys UK.
(www.maestropms.com)
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Marriott International is piloting NCR's EasyPoint Xpress check-in kiosk in the three Marriott properties at Newark International Airport, NJ, Hanover, NJ and Crystal Gateway (Washington DC).
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The 898-room Wilshire Grand in Los Angeles is implementing MICROS' OPERA Property Management System (PMS). (www.wilshiregrand.com, www.micros.com)
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RESERVATIONS
- Amadeus and Net Trans announce automated commission clearing service for hotels via GDS
- E-site Marketing launches RezTrack Web site traffic and analysis product
- OTA publishes 2004A specifications
- Mandarin Oriental renews contract with TRUST for worldwide CRS and call center services
Amadeus and Net Trans have announced an automated commission clearing service for hotels, claimed to be the first available on a GDS. The service is available to any Amadeus agent, and automatically secures prompt commission payments for the agent. The Amadeus GDS transmits the travel agency's hotel booking data to the Net Trans commission processing service, which automatically claims commission due from the hotel on behalf of the travel agency. (www.amadeus.com)
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E-site Marketing has launched RezTrack, a Web site traffic and analysis product tracking the life cycle of a Web site booking from the originating source and booking path to the final booking conversion. The initial product launch will be in partnership with SynXis. RezTrack allows hoteliers to evaluate Web site and online marketing initiatives by calculating actual conversions to online reservations with four levels of analysis: Look to Book report, Booking Path report, Referring URL report and Reservations report. (www.esitemarketing.com, www.synxis.com)
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The OpenTravelAlliance (OTA) has published its 2004A specifications, incorporating updates to documentation, longer periods of requirements planning for future messages and resolution of public comments on current messages. Specific enhancements include:
- Air Work Group: more thorough embedded documentation to promote better understanding of the message content and lower the barrier to trading partner interoperability.
- Hotel Work Group: reengineered the OTA_HotelInvBlockNotif messages to better reflect the members requirements.
- Car Work Group: general requirements for Rental Checkout and Checkin messages, planned for release in the 2004B Publication.
(www.opentravel.org)
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Mandarin Oriental has renewed its service contract with Cendantīs TRUST International for worldwide Central Reservations Systems (CRS) and call center services. (www.mandarinoriental.com, www.trustinternational.com)
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MARKETING / MANAGEMENT
- Orient-Express selects Sansora for data optimization and CRM services
Orient-Express Hotels, Trains, and Cruises has selected Sansora International for guest data optimization and customer relationship management (CRM) services at its properties in 22 countries. (www.orient-express.com, www.sansora.com)
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REVENUE MANAGEMENT
- ARAMARK Harrison Lodging order MaximRMS' LexKey for over 50 properties
- Travelodge UK completes deployment of IDeaS at all 240 hotels in record time
- IDeaS appoints Dubai-based Wide Systems as distributor for the Middle East
- Royal Windsor Hotel, Brussels, implements Optims.Hotel Revenue Management System
ARAMARK Harrison Lodging has ordered Maxim Revenue Management Solutions (MaximRMS)' LexKey Revenue Management system for implementation at all ARAMARK Harrison properties, which comprise more than 50 conference centers, corporate training centers and hotels. LexKey is a customized version of MaximRMS' web-based maxim E.Flex system, controls from which are uploaded directly to each distribution channel through LexKey's interface with Lexington Services' central reservations system. (www.aramarkharrisonlodging.com, www.maximRMS.com)
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Travelodge UK has completed its deployment of IDeaS at all 240 hotels in 90 days, well under the original implementation schedule of 100 days.
IDeaS has appointed Dubai-based Wide Systems as its distributor in the Middle East. Wide already markets and services other hospitality systems including its own ShawMan proprietary PMS and POS systems and Serenata's CRM system.
(www.widesystems.com, www.travelodgeuk.com, www.ideas.com)
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The 266-room Royal Windsor Hotel, Brussels, one of Warwick International's 30+ worldwide properties, has implemented Optims.Hotel Revenue Management System. (www.royalwindsorbrussels.com, www.optims.com)
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SALES & CATERING, MEETING PLANNING
- Rosen College of Hospitality Management implements NFS Hospitality's Rendezvous
- Barcelona's Hotel Majestic deploys Newmarket's Delphi Single-Property Edition
- Newmarket partners with Cendyn to integrate Delphi with eProposal
- Newmarket updates its Delphi BI Business Intelligence system
The Rosen College of Hospitality Management at the University of Central Florida has implemented NFS Hospitality's Rendezvous browser-based conference, meeting room and facilities management solution. British-based NFS recently opened US offices in Florida and New York. (www.nfs-hospitality.com)
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Barcelona's recently renovated 303-room Hotel Majestic has deployed Newmarket's Delphi Single-Property Edition v9.1.2 Sales & Catering system, including MarketVision CRM and Delphi Diagrams meeting space management software.
Newmarket and Cendyn have partnered to integrate Newmarket's Delphi applications to Cendyn's eProposal web-based group proposal generation software. By directly routing Delphi information such as dates, rates and group size to eProposal, hotel sales staffs can track their sales production, as well as how many proposals are created each month, for whom, with what bottom-line results.
Newmarket announced updates to its Delphi BI Business Intelligence system for more efficient data storage, mining and analysis. Key features include high-performance, fault-tolerant Warehouse and Extract Transform Load (ETL) capabilities for rapid extraction of multiple properties' data on a nightly basis from either Single or Multi-Property Editions of Delphi, support for tools such as Cognos, Crystal and Microsoft On-Line Analytical Processing (OLAP) Services, multi-currency support, a warehouse of performance and historical data to support OLAP and reporting applications, and re-usable, extensible Hospitality Data Marts, Cubes and Catalogs.
(www.hotelmajestic.es, www.cendyn.com, www.newmarketinc.com)
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F&B/POINT OF SALE
- Number of POS installations in US and Canada leaped by 16% in 2003
- Tropicana in Atlantic City installs InfoGenesis' Revelation POS
- Dave & Buster's selects MICROS's mymicros.net and iCare as CRM tool for 33 locations
The number of POS installations at restaurants in the United States and Canada leaped by 16 percent in 2003, with equally strong growth expected for 2004, according to a market technology study released by IHL Consulting Group. IHL's "2004 North American Hospitality Point-of-Sale Terminals Market Study" covers five segments within hospitality, from quick-service dining to casinos and cruise ship, and provides details of the overall market value for hardware, software, peripherals and maintenance, the installed base of technologies and operating systems, POS shipments, biometric technologies, handheld wireless terminals and more.
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The Tropicana Casino and Resort in Atlantic City has installed InfoGenesis' Revelation POS system, with more than 60 IBM SurePOS 500 terminals managing all food and beverage and spa transactions throughout the property. (www.tropicana.net, www.infogenesis.com)
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Dave & Buster's has selected MICROS's mymicros.net and iCare, in combination with the MICROS 9700 Hospitality Management System, as the central CRM tool for its 33 locations. Implementation started in April and is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2004. Dave & Buster's will manage several facets of its operation through a single point, including magnetic-striped "Power Cards" (used for game play), gift cards, and timed game rentals such as billiards and shuffleboard. The system will also interface to Dave & Buster's labor management and inventory systems. (www.daveandbusters.com, www.micros.com)
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GUEST SERVICES
- LodgeNet now services over one million guestrooms
- Sailport Waterfront Suites Resort, Hilton College Station install wireless HSIA from StayOnline
- Hyatt begins roll-out of T-Mobile wireless HSIA services across the US
LodgeNet Entertainment announced a number of milestones:
- it now provides on-demand services and/or satellite programming to more than one million guest rooms worldwide.
- 46% of its total interactive room base is served with digital systems delivering hotel-specific mixes of on-demand movies, games, music and music videos, along with shorter form entertainment like previously aired TV programs and special-interest features.
- over the last year LodgeNet has delivered customized SIGNETURE TV solutions for six major lodging brands, with development in progress for a seventh, serving more than 160,000 guest rooms.
(www.lodgenet.com)
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Tampa Bay's Sailport Waterfront Suites Resort has implemented wireless high-speed Internet access from StayOnline in all 210 guestrooms and its common areas, including the pool, restaurants and conference facility.
The recently-renovated Hilton College Station (Texas) & Conference Center has installed fully wireless high-speed Internet access (HSIA) in guestrooms, meeting rooms and common areas from StayOnline.
(www.stayonline.net)
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Hyatt has contracted with T-Mobile for wireless HSIA services in guestrooms and public areas of its properties across the United States. Deployment began with the Hyatt Charlotte (N.C.), which will be followed by the Hyatt Regency O'Hare (Chicago), Columbus (OH), Chesapeake Bay (MD) and the Grand Hyatt New York. The rollout will continue into 2005. (www.hyatt.com, www.t-mobile.com)
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BACK OFFICE
- Sports Club/LA installs priZem international's Labor Intelligence system
The Sports Club/LA has installed priZem international's Labor Intelligence system for labor reporting at all clubs within its eastern US region, and plans to include the rest of its eight US operations. (www.thesportsclubla.com, www.prizem.com)
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INVENTORY/PURCHASING
- Hilton International Hotels/Asia Pacific and Middle East selects Moreton Bay's Check
Hilton International Hotels/Asia Pacific and Middle East has selected Moreton Bay Technology's Check software suite as its preferred solution for inventory & cost control, supply chain management and data warehousing. The system will be used throughout the supply chain for site level control of inventory and purchasing and for Area Office negotiations of quotes and contracts. (www.hilton.com, www.mbtcheck.com)
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ENGINEERING
- Mintek announces 100th installation of WinTrack PM
Mintek Mobile Data Solutions announced the 100th installation of its WinTrack PM mobile preventative maintenance solution, implemented at the 201-guestroom Cheeca Lodge & Spa in Islamorada, Fla.. (www.cheeca.com, www.mintek.com)
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COMMUNICATIONS
- SDD and Telemanager.net merge
SDD and Telemanager.net are merging, combining SDD's JAZZ Enterprise communications accounting software with Telemanager.net's measurement and verification-based management service programs. The combined company will do business as SDD, with corporate offices remaining in Delray Beach, FL. Telemanager.net programs will become a service line of SDD with the services group operating from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (www.telemanager.net, www.sddsystems.com)
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