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Given the hotel’s advantage in quality over the guest’s portable devices, the proper packaging of services will lure even the most avid self-contained guest back to using the hotel’s telecom services.

Hotels are unable to compete on price with devices that the guest has brought with him.  What the hotel can do is offer a better experience at a reasonable price to entice guests to use the hotel’s telecom infrastructure.

Attracting the Guests to Use the Hotel’s Telecommunication Services

The guest now has a variety of choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, calling cards and now even Internet-based phones.   All these alternatives offer a less expensive means of communicating than using the traditional hotel guestroom phone and other services such as fax.

No matter what telecommunications strategy a property takes, one thing is for certain, it needs to be a different one from the past.

The guest now has a variety of choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, calling cards and now even Internet-based phones.   All these alternatives offer a less expensive means of communicating than using the traditional hotel guestroom phone and other services such as fax

No matter what telecommunications strategy a property takes, one thing is for certain, it needs to be a different one from the past.

Attracting the Guests to Use the Hotel’s Telecommunication Services   Hotels are unable to compete on price with devices that the guest has brought with him.   What the hotel can do is offer a better experience at a reasonable price to entice guests to use the hotel’s telecom infrastructure. No matter what cell phone the guest may carry or what service provider is used, no wireless connection is as good as a land-line connection

Guests had little choice back then but to use the guestroom phone and grumble about the cost.

Assuming that the wireless reception quality is acceptable, it is very difficult for the hotel to compete on a cost basis .

Assuming that the wireless reception quality is acceptable, it is very difficult for the hotel to compete on a cost basis

Another concern among hoteliers is what can be termed the self-contained guest

Another concern among hoteliers is what can be termed the self-contained guest

Theoretically, the self-contained guest needs no hotel telecommunications services .  

Theoretically, the self-contained guest needs no hotel telecommunications services

Guests had little choice back then but to use the guestroom phone and grumble about the cost.

Hotels are unable to compete on price with devices that the guest has brought with him.   What the hotel can do is offer a better experience at a reasonable price to entice guests to use the hotel’s telecom infrastructure. No matter what cell phone the guest may carry or what service provider is used, no wireless connection is as good as a land-line connection

The early 1980s marked the beginning of an era of profitable hotel telephone departments.  The advent of call accounting systems (thanks to deregulation) enabled hoteliers to easily mark up calls to a profitable (some say too profitable) level.  Guests had little choice back then but to use the guestroom phone and grumble about the cost. This era has come to an end.  With few exceptions, most hotels have seen between a 15 percent and 25 percent drop in telephone revenues over the last five years.  The main reason for this decrease is guest choice.  The guest now has a variety of choices for communicating including fax over the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, calling cards and now even Internet-based phones.   All these alternatives offer a less expensive means of communicating than using the traditional hotel guestroom phone and other services such as fax . A fax machine in the guestroom was considered a premium amenity for many years.  With the Internet explosion, however, the machines have seen less use.

"I think that you will begin to see more hotels going to RFID and smartphone entry before using biosystem recognition," says Wolfe. "These systems are expensive, and there are many consumers who just don't want this information stored somewhere -- for a variety of reasons."

Systems that track the other qualities that make each human unique are in development as well.

Yet more card-free security systems are on the way.

Many industry watchers are keeping an eye on Houston's largest hotel, the vast 1,200-room Hilton Americas–Houston. The hotel has a facial recognition system that can identify and track guests, employees, and even suitcases. With 700 employees and an annual $16 million payroll, the system offers benefits such as employee time-theft monitoring and prevention for the hotel. But travelers aren't that concerned about employees taking an extra cigarette break. What it means for you is that the system includes alerts if unwanted people are on the property and a response time of mere seconds if there's an incident. Customer service is heightened as well: Returning guests will be recognized and greeted by name. And with 1,200 rooms worth of luggage in transit, the system makes it a lot easier to find lost or misdirected bags.

not everyone wants to be on-camera, all the time. With concerns about "snooping" and a Truman Show-like lack of privacy, might guests feel that systems such as this are too intrusive in our hotels? "

Technology is opening new doors to hotel safety, and the way we navigate hotels is set to change in the blink of an eye. Or the swipe of a cellphone. Or the print of a finger. With futuristic systems like scent and iris scanners and digital facial-recognition, hotel security is being taken to the next level. #plain_module { width: 590px; height:170px; border: none; float:left; margin:0px; font-size:12px;} #plain_module img {border:none; width: 13px; height:14; border: 0px; margin:0px; } #plain_module .mini_main { margin: 0px; padding:0px; width:585px; height:220px; repeat scroll 0 0} #plain_module .mini_item_header {padding:10px 0px; margin: 0px 0px; font-size:16px; color: #555555; border-bottom:1px dotted #CCCCCC;} #plain_module .mini_item {padding:5px 0px; margin: 0px 0px;} #plain_module a { color: #49A3CA; text-decoration:none; } #plain_module a:hover { color: #F98419; text-decoration:underline;} span.gray {color:#949494;} .mini_main li{list-style-type: none;background-image: url(http://www.aolcdn.com/travel/bullet);background-repeat: no-repeat;background-position: 0 1px;padding-left: 10px;} Those plastic key cards that once seemed so innovative will soon go the way of the actual key. The new thing is contact-less Smartcards and RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) cards that need just be waved to allow room access. Much like the cruise world's one card system, these cards may soon make hotel stays easier by allowing guests to pay for services, as well as to check-in and check-out, through a single device. Travelers may even be able to save preferences on the cards, from pillow type to floor choice. RFID cards are already in use at New York's Plaza Hotel, and Starwood Hotels are considering introducing them into their hip Aloft and Element properties. But travelers worried they will constantly have to traipse back to reception every time they lose their card need not despair. Security systems in some hotels do away with cards altogether. "In addition to Radio Frequency Identification, there are also systems that use a smartphone, such as an iPhone," says Frank Wolfe, CEO of Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals. "When a guest checks into a hotel and provides their phone number, they get an encrypted sound code via text message." You can then play back the code to unlock your room door.

Systems that track the other qualities that make each human unique are in development as well. Movement-activated video-capture systems were showcased in New Zealand in September 2010. Researchers are at work on devices capable of recognizing an individual's gait or walk and even their DNA. Frank Wolfe says, "If you want to go 'way out there', there are some systems being explored that can allegedly sniff someone, and also systems that can recognize the pattern of blood veins on a human being which are apparently unique to the individual," says Wolfe. Quite common in Japan, vascular-recognition systems such as this are still "several years off," according to Wolfe. "I think that you will begin to see more hotels going to RFID and smartphone entry before using biosystem recognition," says Wolfe. "These systems are expensive, and there are many consumers who just don't want this information stored somewhere -- for a variety of reasons."

The four leading technologies which have showed a high adoption rate from the industry and have received attention from academia are: self-service, wireless, green, and security technologies. The advantages of these technologies for hoteliers include enhanced customer services and operational efficiency (Doyle, 2007), decreased guest wait times, more efficient methods to settle bills (Singh & Kasavana, 2005), reduction of energy costs (Meeroff & Scarlatos, 2007), and protection of sensitive customer data and credit card numbers

In addition, exploring the influential factors of security system usage will provide greater depth of knowledge with respect to why some hotels have adopted more security systems than others.

there is still a lack of understanding of the nature of risk associated with inadequate IT security, especially among operators of hotels that do not have their own IT departments.

Self-service technologies are commonly defined as devices or applications which permit users to produce a service independent from the direct involvement of the service provider (Meuter, Ostrom, Roundtree, & Bitner, 2000). The use of self-service technologies in the hotel industry has grown considerably, especially in the areas of self check-in, in-room check-out, and foodservice kiosks

IT systems refer to general support systems such as mainframe computer, mid-range computer, and local area network.

Some of the most significant wireless technology applications involve the use of mobile handheld devices, such as personal digital assistants (PDA), tablet PCs, and cellular phones, or RFID (radio frequency identification). RFID utilizes computer chips and antennas, allowing the chips to wirelessly communicate with a receiver.

While the major usage of RFID in the hotel industry was for inventory control purposes, it also has the potential to be utilized in ways that can provide more conveniences for the guests.

Other possible uses include placing RFID tags on items of high value as a means of theft prevention or integrating tags into guest loyalty cards for easy identification

IT investment that lowers environmental impact and IT that manages the environmental impact of other systems are commonly referred to as “green technology”

Many hoteliers might think becoming more environmentally friendly will cost more for their hotels. However, it has been demonstrated that “going green” is not only the right thing to do for the environment but also provides tangible bottom-line benefits for hotels by reducing consumption of energy and water, as well as other related costs.

Some of the risk factors involved include reliability, security, and privacy issues

A hotel with more technologies being utilized will install more security systems than those with fewer technologies.

Many of these attacks involve attempts by thieves to gain access to customer credit card data, and these attempts constitute a major portion of the risk inherent in IT security

if a system is breached and the merchant is not PCI compliant, the merchant then is responsible for all costs associated with improperly used credit card information taken from that system (Kress, 2008). These losses could bankrupt a business if the security breach goes undetected for even a short time.

IT security systems are those measures taken to protect the confidentiality and integrity of proprietary data.

two main paradigms of adoption are believed to occur: bottom-up adoption and top-down adoption.

Thus, it is reasonable to assume that organizational factors (e.g., financial factor, human resource) will influence the implementation stage of security systems at a hotel.

A hotel with sufficient IT budget will install more security systems than those with insufficient IT budget.

That is, if a hotel does not have its own IT department, it will have a negative influence on successfully installing or maintaining necessary security systems.

A hotel with its own IT department will install more security systems than those without.

Overall, the state of IT spending on security continues undiminished because managed security services are required for almost every application (Communications News, 2007).

risk associated with a breach of IT systems security (e.g., network break-ins) is very high. Consequently, no sector of the business community is exempt from attacks on their IT systems, with an attack being defined as a technique used to exploit a system’s vulnerabilities.

Given the importance of security and privacy at a luxury hotel, this study expects luxury properties to have installed more security systems than other segments

Most hotel employees use their property management systems for hotel operations and should be able to check their e-mails.

To justify the low response rate, previous studies which have compared response rates of mail and e-mail for surveys were reviewed.

the large majority of respondent properties do not have their own IT departments. Second, the people making IT decisions generally do not have IT backgrounds or training. Third, the large majority of respondent properties have little more than firewalls or antivirus software to protect their proprietary data, and these systems alone are not adequate to meet PCI standards, as they do not take steps to encrypt and protect cardholder data, maintain a vulnerability management program, implement strong access control measures, regularly monitor and test their networks, and maintain an information security policy as required by the Security Standards Council.

The respondents were asked to select from a total of fourteen securities related systems

The profile of the respondents revealed that they were experienced hoteliers with more than ten years experience in the industry

Fifty-three percent of the respondents reported that they were with chain hotels that would be considered mid-range properties with an average of 175 rooms (median of 107). Over 80% of the respondents reported working in operations, while fewer than 4% reported working in either IT or engineering (Table 1).

Nearly 70% of the respondents’ properties did not have their own IT department (69.2% did not have, and 30.8% had their own IT departments, n = 234, missing data = 10).

Fifty-three percent of them (n = 244) thought the most important goal for hotel technology would be enhancing the customer’s experience.

second identified goal was utilizing technology to help generate revenue (41%)

differentiate properties from their competition (20%), to lower expenses (16%), and to increase security (6%).

Internet kiosks in the lobby represented the most frequently used self-service technology (36.5%, n = 244), followed by kiosks for airline check-in/board pass

With respect to security systems currently in use, antivirus security systems represented the most frequently used security system (92.2%), followed by hardware firewalls, software firewalls, physical security, and encrypted login security systems.

intrusion detection was the most frequently identified system (15.6%), followed by vulnerability assessment scanning (13.5%), Internet scanning (13.1%), antivirus (11.5%), digital ID server (11.5%), and nonreusable passwords (9.8%; Table 2).

Thus, the hypothesis was supported that there was a linear relationship between the three factors and the adequacy of security systems.

The positive standardized coefficient (β) of .389 indicates that there was a statistically significant (p < .001) linear relationship between IT usage (the number of wireless, self-service, and green technologies a hotel was using) and the adequacy of security systems

The study revealed certain things of interest, the most significant of which is the need for greater emphasis on IT security among hoteliers.

only about 30% of all respondents reported having their own IT departments. Since budget hotel properties are extremely unlikely to have an IT department, it is highly likely that the very large majority of IT decisions throughout the industry are being made by hotel operators for whom IT is not their primary area of concern.

Furthermore, the focus of hoteliers for future IT implementations is enhancing the guest experience (53%) and generating revenue (41%). Very few respondents (6%) identified increasing security as a 5-year IT goal.

While almost all respondents use information systems as part of their jobs, very few are trained in the development, maintenance, and secure use of these systems.

no correlation was found between the respondents’ perceived adequacy of their IT budgets and the adequacy of installed security systems, as adequacy of IT budget did not appear as a significant term in the regression analysis.

Nearly 10% of respondents do not have so much as anti-virus protection for their systems, and nearly half do not even take simple physical precautions to protect their IT systems.

we note that no correlation exists between the respondents’ perceived adequacy of their IT budgets and the number of installed IT security systems, as the number of installed systems was not a significant factor in the regression analysis.

The sample obtained in this study represented the targeted sample: over 80% of the respondents were working in hotel operations. Furthermore, the purpose of this study was to explore hotel operators’ insight of technology usage, IT budget, and security measures rather than to confirm existing theories or to generalize the results.

it is reasonable to conclude that the respondents did not have an adequate understanding of the nature of the IT security hazards facing them for the average property does not have installed systems adequate to meet PCI standards, yet they reported having adequate budgets.

In order to adequately protect proprietary data, one must have an understanding of network security, which is an understanding apart from software functionality.

Properties with their own IT departments, however, reported that they had a higher number of installed IS security systems than did those properties without their own IT departments.

roperties without their own IT departments, in particular, have a less adequate understanding of their IT security needs than may be necessary.

This study found hoteliers’ lack of attention to security provision, training in IT, and PCI compliance can place hoteliers at great risk. For example, the cost of a single incident at a noncompliant property could result in the loss of the entire business.

It will be useful to examine the reasons why luxury properties are more likely to employ adequate security measures to determine whether this greater use is attributable to better understanding of security issues or some other factor.

The study was limited by the nature of online surveys; the response rate was quite low. Future studies could test the proposed research model via paper-based mail surveys to increase a response rate.

Systems that track the other qualities that make each human unique are in development as well.

here are some systems being explored that can allegedly sniff someone, and also systems that can recognize the pattern of blood veins on a human being which are apparently unique to the individual,

new thing is contact-less Smartcards and RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) cards that need just be waved to allow room access.

Kimpton's 190-room Nine Zero Hotel in Boston was the first hotel to install a biometric iris scanner back in 2004

we navigate hotels is set to change in the blink of an eye. Or the swipe of a cellphone. Or the print of a finger. With futuristic systems like scent and iris scanners and digital facial-recognition, hotel security is being taken to the next level. #plain_module { width: 590px; height:170px; border: none; float:left; margin:0px; font-size:12px;} #plain_module img {border:none; width: 13px; height:14; border: 0px; margin:0px; } #plain_module .mini_main { margin: 0px; padding:0px; width:585px; height:220px; repeat scroll 0 0} #plain_module .mini_item_header {padding:10px 0px; margin: 0px 0px; font-size:16px; color: #555555; border-bottom:1px dotted #CCCCCC;} #plain_module .mini_item {padding:5px 0px; margin: 0px 0px;} #plain_module a { color: #49A3CA; text-decoration:none; } #plain_module a:hover { color: #F98419; text-decoration:underline;} span.gray {color:#949494;} .mini_main li{list-style-type: none;background-image: url(http://www.aolcdn.com/travel/bullet);background-repeat: no-repeat;background-position: 0 1px;padding-left: 10px;}

This is the most obvious technology we can’t live without. Let’s be honest—-most of us are glued to our smartphones and our favorite apps 24 hours a day.

Chances are, if you walk around a convention center or hotel lobby, you will see people with their heads down, tapping away furiously on their smartphones

How did we ever find time to accomplish everything before smartphones came into existence?

your event management system with a customer relationship management (CRM) system such as Salesforce,

the benefits of the SaaS (software as a service) delivery model are becoming increasingly apparent.

These applications are advantageous to planners because they allow us to access all details and execution aspects of an event from any web-enabled device—be it a computer, smartphone, or iPad

With SaaS cloud apps, just provide end-users with reports-only access to what they need and nothing more. 

integration options available to planners, you are now blessed with the ability to link up your event management system with a customer relationship management (CRM) system such as Salesforce,

2. SaaS Cloud Apps

With all of the information you  could ever need to access right at your fingertips through event management applications, you can ditch the millions of pieces of paper and now access contracts, registrations, room blocks,

Live and virtual events are about giving the attendee a choice as to how they spend their time

“webinars on steroids.” Live and virtual events are about giving the attendee a choice as to how they spend their time.

virtual events save the planner and attendee time, money, and resources.

virtual events save the planner and attendee time, money, and resources.

Virtual events are a great way for planners to fill seats at a cost that won’t make anyone wince.

This is the best tool in the box for improving future events.

4. Social Media and Viral Marketing

Did you know that one out of three consumers is online for three or more hours per day? Or that 90 million tweets are sent out daily? What about this one: One of every eight minutes spent online is spent on Facebook

Some of the best traction you will get is from people sharing interesting tidbits they may have learned and enticing others to learn more

Today is the day of the iPad and the tablet, and a more simplified life.

3. Virtual Events

In a world where everyone is always on the run, our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

Smartphones

Chances are, if you walk around a convention center or hotel lobby, you will see people with their heads down, tapping away furiously on their smartphones. 

Whether the ubiquity of these devices is a blessing or a curse, the fact is, event professionals and participants alike would be lost without them.

SaaS Cloud Apps

SaaS (software as a service) delivery model

These applications are advantageous to planners because they allow us to access all details and execution aspects of an event from any web-enabled device

Additionally, with all of the integration options available to planners, you are now blessed with the ability to link up your event management system with a customer relationship management (CRM) system

Virtual Events

Virtual events are a great way for planners to fill seats at a cost that won’t make anyone wince.

Often complementing physical events, virtual events save the planner and attendee time, money, and resources.

There is word that the economy is making a recovery, but many of us have yet to see it.

Social Media and Viral Marketing

Did you know that one out of three consumers is online for three or more hours per day? Or that 90 million tweets are sent out daily? What about this one: One of every eight minutes spent online is spent on Facebook. 

So this should be a no-brainer

This marketing can come from either you or your attendees. Allowing attendees to share things that they like and getting them involved in hyping your event is a great way to spread the word. 

iPads and Tablets

Today is the day of the iPad and the tablet, and a more simplified life. 

When combining tablets with mobile event applications, planners can also communicate in real-time with participants and share or update information in seconds. Never leave home without one! 

is there a role – and a future - for hospitality call accounting? Do hotels/motels still need call accounting systems? The answer to these questions is a profound YES and YES!

Hospitality call accounting has a bright future

PhoneSuite’s phone systems for economy to midscale properties integrate seamlessly with Property Management Systems and eliminate hours of training with an easy-to-use console

Reservations ― features are integrated with other functionality such as profiles, cashiering and deposits. This property management software module provides a complete set of features for creating and updating individual, group and business block reservations, including deposit handling, cancellations, confirmations, wait listing, room blocking and sharing.

Profiles ― complete demographic records for guests, business accounts, contacts, groups, agents and sources. Profiles include addresses, phone numbers, membership enrollments, stay and revenue details, guest preferences and additional data that make reservations handling and many other activities faster and more accurate.

Back Office Interface ― revenue transfers, market statistics transfers, daily statistics transfers, and city ledger transfers can be easily made from OPERA Property Management System to a back office system.

Rooms Management ― handles all facets of room supervision including availability, housekeeping, maintenance and facility management. The Queue Rooms feature of the property management software coordinates Front Office and Housekeeping efforts when guests are waiting for rooms which are not immediately available for assignment.

Cashiering ― posting guest and passer-by charges (including taxes and other generates), making posting adjustments, managing advance deposits, settlements, checkout and folio printing are a few of the many activities handled by OPERA Cashiering. Cashiering accommodates multiple payment methods per reservation including cash, check, credit cards and direct bill. In multi-property environments, guest charges can be cross-posted from any property in the hotel complex

Cashiering ― posting guest and passer-by charges (including taxes and other generates), making posting adjustments, managing advance deposits, settlements, checkout and folio printing are a few of the many activities handled by OPERA Cashiering. Cashiering accommodates multiple payment methods per reservation including cash, check, credit cards and direct bill. In multi-property environments, guest charges can be cross-posted from any property in the hotel complex

Cashiering ― posting guest and passer-by charges (including taxes and other generates), making posting adjustments, managing advance deposits, settlements, checkout and folio printing are a few of the many activities handled by OPERA Cashiering. Cashiering accommodates multiple payment methods per reservation including cash, check, credit cards and direct bill. In multi-property environments, guest charges can be cross-posted from any property in the hotel complex

Cashiering ― posting guest and passer-by charges (including taxes and other generates), making posting adjustments, managing advance deposits, settlements, checkout and folio printing are a few of the many activities handled by OPERA Cashiering. Cashiering accommodates multiple payment methods per reservation including cash, check, credit cards and direct bill. In multi-property environments, guest charges can be cross-posted from any property in the hotel complex

Cashiering ― posting guest and passer-by charges (including taxes and other generates), making posting adjustments, managing advance deposits, settlements, checkout and folio printing are a few of the many activities handled by OPERA Cashiering. Cashiering accommodates multiple payment methods per reservation including cash, check, credit cards and direct bill. In multi-property environments, guest charges can be cross-posted from any property in the hotel complex

Cashiering ― posting guest and passer-by charges (including taxes and other generates), making posting adjustments, managing advance deposits, settlements, checkout and folio printing are a few of the many activities handled by OPERA Cashiering. Cashiering accommodates multiple payment methods per reservation including cash, check, credit cards and direct bill. In multi-property environments, guest charges can be cross-posted from any property in the hotel complex

Your front desk often makes the difference between ‘never agains’ and ‘long-term relationships.’ At the core of the OPERA Enterprise Solution is our premier property management software, the OPERA Property Management System (PMS). Designed to meet the varied requirements of any size hotel or hotel chain, OPERA PMS provides all the tools a hotel staff needs for doing their day-to-day jobs – handling reservations, checking guests in and out, assigning rooms and managing room inventory, accommodating the needs of in-house guests, and handling accounting and billing. The property management software is configurable to each property’s specific requirements and operates in either single-property or multi-property mode, with all properties in an enterprise sharing a single database

When buying a call accounting system, hotel managers have three system choices: software, hardware, or web-based products. Web-based products tend to get quite expensive due to the monthly subscription fees which are based on the number of extensions and users. Software products are more flexible than hardware-based systems due to the added capabilities of the PC, but often require large amounts of memory to store and retrieve call data efficiently. Hardware or stand-alone systems appear to be the most popular form of call accounting systems in the hospitality industry due to the fact that the systems are quite small and can be stored in a closet or drawer. Stand-alone systems, like software and web-based products, will automatically post call records directly to the Property Management System for future retrieval.

first database management systems

The hospitality industry is at “a tipping point in terms of cloud adoption”, with hoteliers expected to invest 7 – 8% more in cloud technology over the next 2 to 3 years.

Cloud-based hotel management systems

hosted by the vendor’s server rather than the hotel’s

On-site hotel management software, managed by the hotel’s IT team, comes with considerable upfront, maintenance and running costs.

business can save 50% with cloud computing solutions

limitless flexibility to work with the vendors of their choice

cost of general operational and maintenance fees,

are part of the package and covered by the vendor

personalized experiences with the help of captured customer information

With traditional software, hoteliers are limited to standalone software packages

The reality is that with traditional hotel management software, adding and removing resources is difficult and hoteliers are essentially stuck with one system until the license expiry date

cloud-based hotel management systems are entirely scalable – they have an unlimited capacity to expand

One of the biggest strengths of a cloud-based hotel management system is that it can be easily connected to other software applications, even if these applications don’t share the same provider.

Cloud-based applications are offered as software as a service (SaaS)

The hospitality industry is at “a tipping point in terms of cloud adoption”, with hoteliers expected to invest 7 – 8% more in cloud technology over the next 2 to 3 years.

Cloud-based hotel management systems – or, simply put, systems hosted by the vendor’s server rather than the hotel’s – give hoteliers a single, scalable system from which to manage every aspect of their hotel business.

A Frost & Sullivan study showed that business can save 50% with cloud computing solutions. The apparition of the cloud and its flexible pricing has slashed businesses’ hardware costs, making it possible for even hotels with small budgets to run an advanced management system.

SaaS hotel management systems are pay-as-you-go. Therefore, rather than having to pay a large sum for a long-term commitment, hoteliers can pay smaller amounts on a regular basis.

The cloud lets hoteliers record this data – their preferences, transactions and behavior – every time the customer interacts in some way with their hotel, such as ordering room service, eating in the hotel restaurant or even booking a day trip or spa session.They can then use this data to make suggestions based on the customer’s preferences and behavior.

Secondly, they enable you to provide guests with the convenience and seamless experience they expect, even before they step into the hotel reception. Armed with a cloud-based system, you can give your guests the convenience they now expect from a hotel stay, such as booking rooms on their mobile phones or accessing their room from an app, to name a few examples.

with traditional hotel management software, adding and removing resources is difficult and hoteliers are essentially stuck with one system until the license expiry date. You’re in a contract, with very little wiggle room.

Cloud-based software gives hoteliers a hotel management system that facilitates rather than restricts business operations. Unlike their on-site predecessors, cloud-based hotel management systems are entirely scalable – they have an unlimited capacity to expand. They give hoteliers the agility and freedom to add or remove resources in line with their growth and scale their hotel management systems to the services they offer.

One of the biggest strengths of a cloud-based hotel management system is that it can be easily connected to other software applications, even if these applications don’t share the same provider.For hoteliers, this capacity and the possibilities that it brings are revolutionary. They now have limitless flexibility to work with the vendors of their choice and can bundle applications together thereby creating a truly customized management suite that meets their needs.

Cloud-based technology gives hoteliers the key to run smart businesses that are in tune with modern-day travelers, and more profitable.

It is crucial for tourism and hospitality practitioners to proactively incorporate new technologies into their businesses as these will improve service quality and differentiate their products and services.

In order to be able to follow the increasing guests' requests for qualitative services, it is mandatory for hotel management to constantly work on improving its functions and operations. For this it is necessary to keep track of innovations in sectors outside the hospitality, like IT sector that works on creating, developing and introducing new technologies

Hospitality is one of targeted sector that is considered appropriate for application of cloud technologies and services. Hotel Management System or widely known as Property Management System (PMS) is one of the system where IT practitioners saw the chance for improvement by ''moving it to the cloud''.

Hotels will be forced to upgrade their current systems so that they can respond to various and changeable guests' habits and requirements. However, until today, there was not enough academic papers related to usage of cloud technology in hospitality industry even though this sector is under continuous changes caused by usage of new technologies which made search, evaluation and payment of the hotel rooms easier than ever.

After comparing the two groups of hotels, from which one was using desktop PMS and other group cloud- based PMS, the results of the research were derived and presented. In conclusion of the paper, challenges with which the hotels are facing and which affect their decision of starting to use cloud- based technology as well as recommendation for future work will be discussed.

As stated by the Sharif (2010), cloud computing is the latest technology that is being introduced by the IT industry as the next (potential) revolution to change how the internet and information systems operate. The term “cloud” was probably inspired by IT text books’ illustrations which depicted remote environments (the Internet) as cloud images in order to conceal the complexity that lies behind them (Sultan,2010).

The goal of a new computing world is to develop software for millions to consume by easily accessing it over a network. Cloud service providers are making profit by charging consumers for accessing these services.

Products offered via this mode include the remote delivery (through the Internet) of a full computer infrastructure (e.g., virtual computers, servers, storage devices, etc.); the building blocks of an IT enterprise.

Services provided in this category include CPU processing on demand, virtual Web hosting, and storage on demand. The most notable vendors are Amazon’s EC2, GoGrid’s Cloud Servers, and Joyent.

With cloud computing, services and applications that were managed locally in the past requiring hardware, operating systems, web servers, as well as teams of network, database and system management experts are now provided remotely by cloud providers under this layer.

Cloud computing services can be adopted by firms in three different forms (Goscinski and Brock, 2010):

Public clouds - online applications that are open to everyone for free, such as Google

Private clouds - involves firms deploying key enabling technologies, such as virtualization and multi-tenant applications, to create their own private cloud database

Hybrid clouds - mix of the previous two types that are emerging with the intention of providing clients with a level of “control” over their resources

The cloud offers enterprises the option of scalability without the financial commitments required for infrastructure purchase and maintenance.

Reallocating information management operational activities to the cloud offers businesses a unique opportunity to focus efforts on innovation and research and development. This allows for business and product growth and may be even more beneficial than the financial advantages offered by the cloud.

These investments and efforts for a new technology to be presented open a new progress circle of technology advancements and it continues in the same way.

When creating software or an application for a hotel, IT personnel have to possess a certain level of flexibility, openness and creativity. On the other hand, hotel employees are expected to have more insightful and openminded approach towards new ways of performing business operations, sometimes take risks and have experiences with using different programs and applications.

A hotel's PMS can gather and keep valuable information about hotel guests by incorporating business intelligence tools which help hoteliers organize and make sense of the gathered data. Regardless of whether room reservations come from Online Travel Agency, Global Distribution Systems or by telephone, all of them are gathered, stored and managed in the PMS.

low investment costs were main reason for hotels from Group B to decide in favor of cloud based version.

Business intelligence options provide hoteliers with a threedimensional view of guest data, which allows easily statistical reporting and increased hotel management efficiency.

The aim of this study was to investigate the difference in practical usage of the two types of PMS systems – cloud based and classical (desktop) ones.

On the question about the reasons for using the current PMS type in hotels, answers of Group A were based on usage of their current PMS for years and on the fact that employees in all hotel departments were used to work on it. As time passed by, hotels upgraded their system to new versions for several times and additional customization was implemented with regard to hotel preferences.

Hotels from Group B were consisted of relatively new boutique hotels that operate for more than a year and from those that were not using any kind of PMS solution (they were using Excel tables and creating reservation records manually). The reason why hotels from this group wanted to use cloud PMS was a desire to try the latest technology used in hospitality industry.

Other reasons for using it were: PMS could be reached from any place where Internet connection is available, simple but effective design with lots of visual solutions, more options to enter the important information and the fact that it is working not only on any PC but also on any mobile device due to its mobile applications.

Simplicity of the cloud based property management system allows it to be productive. Cloud based PMS's can operate on any advice that has a web browser and the companies are putting their efforts to make it even more friendly on smaller devices like tablets and smart phones.

The similar amount of initial investments were confirmed by the Group A. Being considered as great amount of money for newly opened and small sized hotels to invest, management decided to try out the cloud version which allows access to this system based on monthly subscription with very little or no investment cost, depending on the solution provider.

After initial investments in the system implementation, hardware, software and training of employees, every year hotel makes a one-year-based contract for additional support services and, if needed, extra training. Support is provided any time a hotel reports an issue or malfunction by directly connecting to hotel's computer through remote programs.

Changes are made either for each hotel at a time, or after releasing new version, when provider try to convince all the current users to upgrade to it. Upgrade is provided by the extra charge, so these costs should be also considered during planning investments in classical PMS.

Regardless of which type of system they used, all participants were very careful about and interested in the matter of data security.

However, it is totally different situation with cloud based system, which is mainly open system where all authorized users and providers from outside have access to. Of course, it is up to hotel management to whom the authorization rights will be given and being an open system it makes support, development and innovation activities much easier. Cloud based PMS are hosted on some of the world's best known servers so there is no need for additional computers to be used as servers.

Although there are some great differences in functions and way of managing regarding classical and cloud based system, both have their advantages from which hotels do not want to give up.

One of the biggest advantages of cloud based PMS for the Group B is the fact that this system can be directly integrated with hotel online booking engine. This is considered as a great advantage for the hotels that besides having functional web site, wish to maximize use of its online booking engine, receive more online reservations directly from the guests and gain more profit.

Such a functional connection between hotel’s PMS and online reservation system allow hotels to have a social media integration as well. This means that hotels are able to receive online reservation through their Facebook page as well as receive direct links to its page from the biggest review sites such as TripAdvior.com.

In this paper two different approaches and perspectives on usage of cloud based and classical hotel management systems were exposed. Hotels from Group B have shown a tendency for usage of new technologies and readiness to adopt and continuously learn about them.

Among factors, affecting why hotel prefers one system over another, are type and size of hotel, through which channels are guest reservations coming, previous experience with IT stuff and different programs, etc.

Cloud based program can help them in order to update prices and room availability information to hotel's booking engine. This prevents overbooking, provides easily management of CRM functions and information, with no first investment costs or extra expenses which results in revenue increase.

Hotels that use classical PMS pay a great attention to the security issue because they do not want to risk opening their hotel for external intervention. In recent years we can find in media lots of evidence of information linkage from system that had much higher security measures than an average hotel.

Measuring the performance of cloud-provided services is another challenge for the hotel management, primarily due to the lack of measurement standards.

While investigating the previous knowledge about the other system solutions, hotels in Group A have claimed lack of information about the cloud technology and its solutions.

Even though IT stuff in these hotels has some basic knowledge about it, it is still not enough to convince the other managers about its benefits. Therefore it may be concluded that, besides trying to overcome the above mentioned challenges, developers of cloud based solutions to hotels should also work hard on training the potential clients about the positive aspects and correct usage of cloud technologies.

Lack of measurement standards for cloud-provided services in general as well as for hotels is another important limitation due to which qualitative research was conducted. Authors’ recommendation is that academicians should focus more on topics of cloud computing, cloud solutions for other business operations and on defining measurements standards for cloud services.

Real-time data means real-time solutions to situations before they become problems. Just think of the time and money you’ll save by identifying issues before they blow out of proportion

Instead of printing out lengthy reports for every shift, now you can access your insights from any smart device—such as your computer, phone, or tablet—and get updated sales, inventory, customer feedback, and more, no matter where you are. 

Legacy systems only allow on-premise access to data, which means you have to be in your restaurant in order to access the information on your POS system.

If you anticipate growth or change, a cloud-based POS system is better enabled to grow with you. 

While buying up all of the necessary technology to get a cloud-based POS system off the ground may seem expensive, they tend to have cheaper operating costs in the long run and some, like Upserve, offer free support 24/7/365. 

With a cloud-based restaurant POS, you have the ability to add on a mobile POS unit that provides a number of benefits.

That decrease in time spent waiting for their check or credit card to return to the table also increases guest satisfaction, boosting your reputation. A mobile restaurant POS also provides contactless payments with a built-in EMV reader, minimizing the exchange between servers and guests – something that is particularly important in this moment.

Cloud-based POS systems update automatically and for free, just like the apps on your mobile device, while traditional POS systems require manual updates that can be labor intensive and costly. 

The beauty of the cloud-based POS format is how scalable and customizable it is—it can work for single-location full service and quick service restaurants, multi-location restaurants, and restaurant groups alike. 

Whether it’s updating your menu on the regular, launching new or improved loyalty programs, or requiring more precise inventory tracking, the more your needs will shift over time, the more sense it makes to opt for cloud-based.

If the internet ever goes down, the system that your legacy POS relies on will be offline and non-functional. Luckily, on a cloud-based restaurant POS system you have the option of switching to offline mode as a back-up. You’ll stay up and running until the internet is able to connect again.

Thanks to the cloud and its encrypted online storage, there’s no risk of hardware or software incompatibility or failure, no viruses or driver hiccups, and no risk of a hard drive accidentally deleting a weekend’s worth of sales reports. It’s all backed up, automatically. 

Plus, younger generations of workers—think millennials and Gen Zs—will be able to get right on board with a cloud-based POS solution with little-to-no training.

Customers will feel good knowing their credit card information is secure and encrypted with the most up-to-date technology. 

No matter what type of establishment, your cloud-based POS can track every last drop of product, allowing you to spot discrepancies in an instant and fix gaps before they become problematic.

Hardware costs are separate from service, and maintenance and support services often come with a hefty fee. 

While traditional POS systems certainly have lower start-up costs, they tend to come with plenty of hidden costs that reveal themselves over time.

upfront costs are kept to a minimum and monthly subscription fees are lower. 

Best of all, instant free upgrades mean no lost revenue from downtime or inconvenient hardware upgrades as your business grows. Instead, plans can be upgraded or downgraded at will, and most providers don’t even charge a fee for the trouble. 

If you have existing setups in place, many third-party vendors have upgraded apps for cloud POS systems to help you maintain your current rewards and promotions planning. 

Most studies are showing that those who switched are sticking with a cloud-based solution, and that legacy POS systems will only decline moving forward.

After over three decades with a legacy POS system that only slowed them down, they made the move to a cloud-based POS to bring their restaurants into the future.

“Our restaurants are chef-driven, so we have specials that change every day. We need to add buttons every day. We change pricing every day. Having to stop and reset all the terminals because it’s not instantaneous was a headache.”

Not only did constant resets of the system create roadblocks for the team at Homegrown Hospitality, but service was also less than stellar and cost more than what it was worth.

We went through a lot of pain—our system would crash all the time, credit cards wouldn’t spool, and data would be lost. Our IT department would spend numerous hours a week just trying to recover data,” Simon explained.

“That was pretty much the breaking point: we were at the point where we needed to upgrade, but it would have cost us several hundred thousand dollars. So we decided to source something new. The functionality and capability of Upserve won us over.”

it comes with back-end features like reports, built-in CRM software, a timeclock with payroll exporting, offline mode and web orders.

iPad POS solution for bars, restaurants, retail shops and professional service providers.

prefer a Windows-based POS system

cloud-based POS system for independent retailers as well as those with multiple locations, such as chains, franchises and buying groups

accounting programs, property management systems, gaming and casino systems, and liquor dispensing systems

an inventory database, e-commerce solutions, a built-in timeclock and 24/7 customer support.

s, Cake has table and guest management features such as reservation and waitlist management as well as a mobile solution, OrderPad, that helps your staff take orders and payments quickly. Cake is cloud-based and provides 24/7 support.

inventory, purchase orders, loyalty programs, gift cards, reports and multi-store management.

It has a built-in timeclock and accounting system. Its restaurant-specific features include reservations, table and delivery management tools, and a kitchen display system.

Features include inventory management, sales analytics, digital receipts and loyalty programs.

employee management, inventory, and reporting tools. It also has an app marketplace and its own API, giving you plenty of options to fully customize the software. The company offers 24/7 phone support.

It supports omnichannel sales and has tools for inventory management, tiered pricing, purchase ordering, analytics, and email marketing and customer loyalty programs.

like stadiums and theme parks.

quick-service and fast casual eateries

he company partners with software vendors, system integrators and value-added resellers in many industries, including retail, healthcare, hospitality, kiosk, gaming and manufacturing.

Features include appointment scheduling, employee management, inventory tracking, integrated payment processing, and gift card and loyalty programs.

It also has multiple customer support resources, including free 24/7 phone and email support, live chat, and community forums.

ERP company that offers both retail and restaurant POS software that you can use as an on-premises system or as a web-based platform that you can access from a browser on any computer, tablet, or phone.

Clover has its own API, so your developers can create custom integrations if needed.