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Cornell gathered a few industry design and green tech experts to discuss the future of sustainable technology in hotels. Modular hotel buildouts can save construction waste and shorten build times, but developers can rarely afford the investment in sustainability practices that exceed code requirements. I see this daily in my career. The benefits are more long-term and if developers are not holding onto the asset long-term, they will not really see an ROI on LEED certifications, etc. CRMs can be used to track guests' digital breadcrumbs and build guest preferences in its database. Building data collection systems into the infrastructure of the hotel will give owners an overall view of where it can improve its sustainability practices.

This article focused on some of the new technologies being introduced within the cruise line industry. Many of the ideas and aspects we discussed in the module are included in the article from augmented reality and facial recognition to in room technology. One part of the article that stood out to me explained the wearable being introduced on cruise ships from medallions to bracelets the technology appears to follow the path of Disney's magic bands. In addition mobile apps allowing delivery services and virtual reality offering games and other ways to entertain onboard the ship sound exciting and innovating for this recovering industry.

This article is very interesting because it is about the Vdara Hotel and Spa in Las Vegas and how they use robots for room service. The delivery robots look like dogs, called "Jett" and "Fetch." They are super technology innovative, and they can do different tasks such as; calling for elevators, alerting guests when they arrive at the hotel through an automated phone call, and traveling alone across the lobby to make sure guests have what they need. Other hotels in Las Vegas are also adopting technology to provide excellent guest services and great experiences. For example, a bar name Tipsy Robot has large machines that make drinks for their customers. Adopting robotics in Las Vegas has become a new trend that can make huge changes for the 300,000 people currently working in the gaming and hospitality industry.

This article deals with cloud PMS and its advantages. Some of the advantages stated by the article are efficiency, low cost, and provides guest with more contactless experience. This is a new trend we are starting to see emerge into the industry especially now more than ever after the events that have occurred due to the pandemic.

Seems to me this took a lot longer for companies to start getting onboard then I would have anticipated. The cost perspective and ease of use should have attracted people right away. Not having to house or protect on site servers from damage and theft is also a critical point. Not to mention the ability to grow the system when necessary.

The article discusses traditional PMS, an on-premises software platform that can range from very basic to extremely powerful and complex. Installation, training and maintenance are expensive for such platforms, and they stifle innovation by not allowing third-party integrations, applications, and solutions. Cloud-based hotel management systems with Open API integration platforms are the future of hotel management software. They are cost-effective and offer many operational benefits. Operating expenses such as the OPERA Cloud PMS improve cash flow, are easy to install, train personnel, and automate many administrative processes. Also, it provides easy access to reporting and performance analytics, as well as contactless guest experiences and mobility.

I found this article about cloud computing and the hospitality industry on the website eHotelier. The article focuses on the hospitality industry's unique relationship with technology. Technology has helped the hospitality industry grow throughout the years. With technology, the hospitality industry can offer better services to its customers, and technology also helps develop the tourism industry. The hospitality industry has included technology innovation as it continues evolving with better technology. For example, hotels can now handle information on internal servers and record customer visits through bookings and in-house data systems. Nowadays, hotels are now using cloud computing because it is inexpensive, provides an accessible service, offers faster service and stronger security, and reduces service and cost because it can be flexible when it comes to business demands. Cloud computing in the hospitality industry is very helpful because the services are faster and more efficient. It decreases wait times, which is valuable for offering customer services and customer satisfaction. Customers can have a more personalized service upon arrival or when checking out. The hotel staff also be aware of guests' room preferences, food, activities, and everything the guest likes before arriving on the premises. Hotels can also partner with travel agencies through the cloud because it offers the opportunity to share applications of data-sharing services. In addition, the cloud also has the benefit of reducing workforce and administration tasks.

Phillips a manufacturer of TVs and other electronics made efforts to reduce its carbon footprint in terms of e-waste by extending the lifetime of its current products used in hospitality. They did this by creating software updates that would upgrade the TVs without having to replace them with newer models that have all the bells and whistles that guests expect to have in newer Smart TVs. Since 2019 "53.6 million metric tons of e-waste" have been calculated up 21 percent since 2014. Laptops and TVs are among the highest number of items being discarded. Phillips like many companies has committed to making green initiatives and one of these ways was with currently used TVs in the industry. Rather than replace them with a newer model they can update with simple software which allows them to last longer. Sustainability has been at the forefront of customers' minds and Phillips made its own commitment to sustainability in the industry. It is great to see tech giants making efforts to be sustainable. I know we hear about "green initiatives" but we often don't see them. This is something tangible and has a huge impact not only on the tech side but for hospitality providers. Instead of needing the greatest and latest they can save money and keep using currently purchased tech and just upgrade it. I find this very appealing especially for smaller HSP that may not have budget replacement every so often. I also find this good for consumers because it can also be done at home. These updates are available for all Phillips tv users, not just HSP. So this goes a long way to benefit the environment. And many more ideas can come from this simple idea.

Facial recognition and the use of biometrics are going to be essential in the future. This article outlines several ways it can impact the hospitality industry in a positive way. The most interesting has to do with F&B capabilities. This system linked with AI will be able to streamline restaurant ordering and payment.

Usually most of computers in the hotel won`t close include in the guest room and work station. It will make huge of waste. With this green IT strategy , hotel will reduce energy consumption and save tones of CO2 annually. Fairmont's strategy is a "great example" of where businesses can hit next

It is amazing how even a small initiative of shutting down work stations after an hour inactivity can be this impactful generating such savings. My only question is that the fact that Fairmount is a global company can they really have a centralized center controlling all work stations? In any case this initiative is driven by their corporate leader and is a powerful message in terms of social responsibility.

Fairmont Hotels & Resorts announced a comprehensive green IT strategy by addressing technology infrastructure and IT operations for all 56 of its hotel properties worldwide. A key part of its green initiatives is a central-managed power-down schedule that all of its internal desktop will be shut down one hour of their activities. One of the spokesmen said that this green IT approach is suitable for hotels that do not traditionally have a data center. He also pointed out that this new green IT approach is easily applied in North America and part of the Europe, whereas a little harder in Asian countries because of the different standard that they use. So what they are working on is to getting everyone to understand its value and set up international standards.

This article talks about the different trends in Digital Marketing that hotels will be facing in 2020.

This article went into explaining how businesses in Palm Springs have experienced a large labor shortage since the pandemic. They have tried advertising, high wages, benefits, etc. however people who left the industry do not have intentions of returning, looking for different career paths. Because of this, business owners have turned to using robots in their facilities. There is a rise of the use of robots and technology in restaurants and hotels, such as delivery food.

This arctic is about what is a global Distribution System, history of the GDS, how does a GDS work and what benefits GDS offer.

A GDS or Global distribution system can come in handy for many different purposes. Some of these companies such as Expedia and Travelocity are know ones in the United States. It is important to weight pros and cons when deciding who to book with when choosing a hotel or an airlines especially since there are so many options. Depending on how you book especially when bundling with a GDS you could get a great deal.

This article evaluates the past and current roles of GDS in the travel and tourism industry. It is clear that the GDS has adapted and changed with the times and now is able to do even more than at its initial conception. However, as the article pointed out the all the functions of the GDS it is clear that OTA's ad websites are also able to provide a lot of these same functions. We discussed this week whether the GDS system is still currently a relevant system and most agreed that it is. However, as we look to the future it will be interesting to see what evolutions the GDS has yet to go through and how it will attempt to remain relevant in the ever changing tourism market.

This article discussed research done on the integration of AR into shopping experiences and highlights the discrepancies between company and customer perceptions. While companies seem to continue to be hesitant to invest in AR technology, consumers are certainly chomping at the bit to try it out. In the survey done for this article it would appear that AR technology is incredibly helpful for virtual try on especially during the pandemic as in store shopping has slowed down and even when in stores consumers would be hesitant to try on clothes or makeup that had been touched by someone else. The results showed that this virtual try on experience was especially helpful for lesser known brands as the ease of trying on virtually meant people often tried brands beyond those they would usually purchase. For hotels this could mean greater interest even without a large brand backing so AR technology could be important for smaller independent hotels. For hotels AR technology could not only help set them apart from other hotels but also could increase consumer confidence during booking as it takes a little bit more out of the mystery of booking a hotel room. Giving guests the ability to "walk" the hotel and visualize where they fit in could definitely increase bookings.

This article is appropriate for those who want to gain historical knowledge of the evolution of Global Distribution Systems (GDS) over the last few decades. The whole history of airlines' creation of the system and how they adapted to insert the computerized reservation system in the 70s. The article offers, through didactic illustrations, the evolution of the system and future perspectives that have been implemented today. Furthermore, offering a brief description of the analog era, the implementation of electronic booking, and how travel agents adapted to new technologies. Overall, it is an excellent source of information that serves as a basis for a better understanding the system's evolution today.

With the advancement of technology in the hospitality sector, much has been adopted to fit the new environment. And as technology aid, the interactive sense of technology across hospitality, some of the major trends that have begun to manifest are shaping the industry and the sector. Technology modified the advancement of utilities and different facilities to transition from electronic to digital in the 21st century. And thus, evoking the need for keyless entry. Hotels with integrated technology can allow guests to access their rooms through smartphones, kiosks, and sometimes plastic cards as keys. The initialization of voice command services such as Amazon's Alexa has been brought to offer a comforting experience as guests can interact and request reservations through Alexa. Robots have been used to adjust the scenes and operations of smart hotels. Thus, every facility within the environment becomes accessible in a digital way. This is also supported by advanced security and digital amenities, which offer numerous growth opportunities.

This article discusses the top 10 communication trends in hotel technology. It shows that the role technology plays in hotel will only continue to grow because like mentioned a lot of activities directly or indirectly use technology. Some of these trends include things like service automation, guest apps, and location based services. These advances will allow hotel staff to be more focused on customer satisfaction and improving hotel operations.

This article discusses some of the main trends that will advance the hospitality industry throughout the new year. It covers many of the topics we discussed in the lecture, such as virtual reality, the importance of innovation, and key modernization concepts. It also talks about subjects relating to sustainability and green topics that will drive how the hospitality industry plans to remain a carbon-managed entertainment option.