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his coupled with the crowded and lucrative nature of the industry has meant that hotel operators and owners have woken up to the need to invest in state-of-the-art technology as a way to differentiate them and remain competitive.

In a recent survey sent to over 2000 individuals it was found that over 50% of respondents were spending the majority of their IT budgets on in-room entertainment as a way to stay on top of their competitors.

art of its larger plan to diversify beyond deals and move into services like scheduling, Groupon announced it had acquired restaurant iPad POS and CRM system Breadcrumb:

This will allow all Breadcrumb’s customers to integrate with Groupon, Groupon Now and Rewards and close the loop on POS redemption. There will also be visibility on customer spending patterns that Groupon currently doesn’t have. Indeed there’s lots of data that Breadcrumb can feed to Groupon.

Maintaining quality accommodations and services while reducing costs is the Holy Grail for many in the hospitality industry.

state-of-the-art HVAC and lighting controls have allowed many hotels to reduce costs by promoting energy efficiency without sacrificing quality.

Heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and electronic appliances are some of the biggest power consumption culprits.

Anticipating risk in the hotel security field is an imprecise art—one that’s grown increasingly difficult with the introduction of new technologies, regulations and global threats.

“In general most mobile devices that are used for business remain unprotected, including lack of any password, let alone a complex password,” said Anthony Roman, founder and CEO of Lynbrook, New York-based hotel security company Roman & Associates.

Ironically, one of the main reasons terrorism tops the list is because it has become less of an issue in recent years, sources said.

Even though the general trend towards self-checkout is positive, many customers are still wary.

The temptation to steal from self-checkout terminals is practically absent with the new buzz about the instillation of cameras, laser scanning, and weighted sensors.

hese people have an understanding of how they work and know how to check themselves out in the most efficient way possible (many times they check themselves out faster than a cashier).  

I make a quick stop for goodies and feel like I’ve entered a miniature Whole Foods: bulk nuts, dried fruit, even local chocolate and salsa from (according to the salesperson) the Lexington farmers’ market.

a kitchen full of Energy Star appliances.

Filtered water pours into the sink, under which I find two bins for recyclables. The toilets are dual-flush, the showers are low-flow, the shampoo and conditioner are in bulk dispensers, and the bellhop tells me that the art on my walls, depicting a leaf motif, was crafted from recycled aluminum and car tires.

Online hotel management system provider Frontdesk Anywhere is developing a state of the art system that administers bookings for Expedia, Agoda and more than 130 international travel agents

The two-way system means that not only is the hotel up to speed on room availability, guests will not be mislead when making online bookings

When the new service is launched, the information needs to be updated just once and is sent to all the booking agents instantly.

LBA Hospitality Partners with M3 Accounting + Analytics to Enhance Accounting Processes and Increase Efficiencies July, 31 2013 M3 Accounting + Analytics Seeking to update and streamline accounting processes for its 70-plus Southeast properties, Dothan, Ala.-based Larry Blumberg & Associates, Inc. (LBA Hospitality) recently announced an expanded partnership with M3 Accounting + Analytics, the national leader in hotel-specific accounting software, operations reporting, and business analytics. “If we are to continue to be an industry leader, we must have the ability to meet the requirements of our stakeholders and provide accurate, real-time and relevant information for our management team and owners,” said LBA President Beau Benton.  LBA sought the ability to swiftly handle budgets, forecasts, and reports, and to dissect business data, all while insuring that the back-office accounting platform functionality was state-of-the-art and industry-specific.  In choosing M3, Benton cited how the company integrates accounting, business intelligence, and reporting, while eliminating most redundancy, software investment and annual hardware/software maintenance. In addition, Benton and LBA were looking for continual and automatic upgrades, backup and disaster protection, and minimized downtime.  LBA is implementing the full suite of M3 products: accounting through the AccKnowledge platform, time, attendance and labor management through the newly released RightTime solution and LaborWatch, and payroll services through RightPay. The company will also continue to use M3 Link business intelligence reporting, as LBA will be expanding it to bring financial data, operating stats, Smith Travel feeds and guest satisfaction data (including verbatim responses) into one completely customizable dashboard. LBA, which launched its business by developing a Sheraton Inn in 1973, is rapidly growing its management business and securing more and more agreements from sophisticated owners and investors.   Scott Watson, M3 Vice President of Sales & Marketing, said, “While our core product remains our accounting solution, we’ve continued to evolve and offer new products and services that meet the current and future needs of the hospitality industry. It is truly exciting that our product platform will help Beau and LBA achieve the aggressive growth they are anticipating over the next five years.”  The implementation and training process for all LBA properties is expected to be complete by December 1.  About LBA Hospitality Based in Dothan, Ala., LBA Hospitality is a hospitality management company focused on maximizing return, safeguarding assets and enhancing value. Founded in 1973, the company now manages 70 properties throughout the Southeast, from Texas to Virginia. More information is available at http://www.LBAHospitality.com.  About M3 Accounting + Analytics M3 is the national leader in hotel-specific accounting software, operations reporting, business intelligence and analytics, processing more than $8 billion in financial transactions for more than 3,000 properties. M3’s integrated suite of hospitality accounting products includes: AccKnowledge, Link, payroll and labor management services, and document imaging and retrieval – all designed to help provide hotel operators, owners and managers unsurpassed access to the information they need in the most integrated and cost-effective manner. The company was founded in Gainesville, Ga. in 1998, and also has a base of operations in Tampa, Fla. More information is available at www.M3AS.com. 

“If we are to continue to be an industry leader, we must have the ability to meet the requirements of our stakeholders and provide accurate, real-time and relevant information for our management team and owners,” said LBA President Beau Benton.  

continue to be an industry leader, we must have the ability to meet the requirements of our stakeholders and provide accurate, real-time and relevant information for our management team and owners,” said LBA President Beau Benton.  

The changes emphasise trends such as localism, individualism, art and sustainability, and come at a time when the Australia hotel sector is undergoing its largest-ever expansion.

Over 200 new or upgraded hotels will be added to Australia’s hotel inventory in the decade to 2025 in city, airport, suburban, regional and resort destinations.

New lifestyle brands introducing new hospitality concepts:

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Since HBR is built on the Android platform and features hybrid-cloud architecture, the software adapts easily to both traditional POS workstations and mobile tablet solutions. In addition to the core software, various value-added modules are available such as tableside ordering via tablet, online ordering and online reservations.

The software is connected to the cloud for remote reporting and POS management through the company’s powerful Lighthouse portal.

for the hospitality industry, the most dramatic developments are taking place thanks to the latest, highly sophisticated POS systems.

customers are now accustomed to personalised service that is smoother and more efficient than ever before, thanks to better customer data and faster payment systems that eliminate the laborious processes of the past.

it needs to take advantage of the positive transformation that can be achieved with today's state-of-the-art POS systems.

Global Distribution System (GDS) is a travel agent’s motherboard for booking airline tickets and other sorts of travel goodies (like hotel and car)

If you are a leisure travel agent, there’s a huge whopping huge chance that you don’t need to use a GDS.

onfuse the GDS with a Central Reservation System or Computerized Reservation System (CRS).