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This article is about how far we are getting with technology in the restaurant business. It shows some examples of places that have acquired some of these innovative technologies.

This article announces the global collaboration between Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Inc. This collaboration is going to allow the Wyndham to upgrade their infrastructure tech and deliver an entirely new way to experience customer service. What I found to be very interesting, besides Wyndham being 90% cloud based, was that AWS is going to help the hotelier develop a new way for guest to automate check-in and leverage AWS partner to deliver customized offers. It will be able to recommend local attractions, restaurants, and entertainment.

The self-serve kiosks or unattended POS systems are changing the customer behavior and getting consumers to spend more. Many major chain restaurants have incorporated them in their business such as Chilis, McDonalds and Taco Bell. Kiosks tend to upsell the customer while regular cashiers may not. Self serve is bette for business, not so much for the customers wallet.

This article goes into depth directly within the Malaysian hospitality industry, of using mobile wallet specifically in restaurants. The Malaysian country wants to to only use mobile wallet however the citizens are mostly cash users. Mobile wallet or M-wallet is used on our telephones that hold our credit/debit card information and have the ability to pay services, people and more. It can be used in stores, restaurants, online and through applications. Malaysia would like to shed light on the m-wallet for their country to shift to a cashless society. As Covid-19 is a way for the m-wallet to be more seen and used to prevent cash exchanges therefore preventing spreading germs. It then goes into the theories and hypothesis of m-wallet as a whole; the technology used. There was a total of 450 questionnaires and 413 responses for the data in whether using mobile wallet was efficient and the level of difficulty it holds. While in this day and age we all have the ability to use mobile wallet. I believe this change in Malaysia will attract tourism from Americans being able to use m-wallet. This will then limit the currency change and we will be able to use our phones for payments without having to exchange money and being able to be as contact-less as possible. Now, while I do not know what the effects of Covid-19 have been in Malaysia, if the mobile wallet is now their everyday use. I hope that their shift has started to work and is making progress.

This article discusses how AI paved the way for some new hospitality innovations in India, one of the world's leading economies in hospitality services. It talked about how although the coronavirus was set to be a huge setback for the industry, India's ability to innovate helped it stay on track with profits similar to what it had seen in previous years. It went on to talk about 4 significant changes that really influenced profits and sustainability and concluded by summarizing the huge potential of AI to positively impact the industry.

I really enjoy reading about how the rest of the world is also adapting to AI/AR. I wonder if this will make people feel more comfortable traveling to other places around the world that they never thought they would travel. Im wondering if that AI/AR experience will change peoples minds.

As the world comes back from the pandemic, hotels are looking for other experiences to entice guests to stay with them, and providing it through new avenues of technology. Hotel flags are working with groups such as Amadeus for a new experience with their reservation system while exploring other avenues for a competitive advantage.

This was about the risks in the hospitality and tourism industry when it comes to big data and analytics. Big data is so important in the hospitality industry because it's how companies know who to cater to and with what and how. In addition to the importance of big data, there are risks that come with it. A few risks are data leaks, hackers, etc. Companies invest money in their systems so these things are avoided.

The article highlights major points of the next one hundred years for disruptors and innovators in the hospitality industry during a keynote webinar among female leaders at Cornell Nolan School of Business. According to one of the keynote speakers, Professor Kim, there is a difference between innovator and disruptor. Innovators create "new products, processes, or business models to create value for customers or employees," while disruptors "significantly change how the industry works". We are all aware of the major disruptor to the hotel industry which is Airbnb; however, according to the article, there are other disruptors such as CitizenM, a modular hotel company and Sonder, a short-term rental company. However, these disruptors should not be seen as competition because most start-ups actually fail. Hotels should rather make space for the disruptors and focus on enhancing on their companies' strengths. It is recommended that hotels formalize specialized teams that can create new products to build on the hotel's strengths. Personally, I believe that it is possible for smaller hotels to work in partnership with local Airbnbs. To do this, they can offer a specialized program with reputable Airbnb owners to offer their place as a recommendation with the same hotel perks if the hotel is fully booked. In this way, the hotel can take a percentage of profits rather than losing all profits to another hotel. Nonetheless, the implementation of cell phones is a driving force for innovation and disruption in the hospitality industry creating more convenience for guests. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic is still driving innovation such as contactless technology, work from home arrangements, Virtual reality and Metaverse. In conclusion, the panelists commented that future disruptions are unpredictable, and companies must look at both smaller and larger companies for changes.

This article shows how technology has advanced in this modern world. From a server ordering your food at a restaurant, to having an ipad that list the menu of the restaurant. It is very practical in the sense that, instead of printing all the time for the different changes that the owner's make when listing the menu, it can be done directly on the ipad with the touch of a button. The guests at "Do Restaurant at the View" place their orders through the touch screen, and then the server only comes when something is requested or to serve the food to the guests. The owner of the restaurant stated "The coolest thing about it is that there are no more wrinkled menus with ketchup on it or pizza sauce on it," says Christian Ruffin. I very much agree with this statement because I have been to restaurants where some menu's were not to clean. On the other hand, I believe that it also changes the atmosphere of the place in a good way, for example, the workers can use the ipad and its applications to change the lighting of the room and also play different songs depending on the mood of the customer's. The customer's order everything using the application, and any request that they need, a server comes to see what they need. With the touch of the ipad, customer's can also notify the valet parking to let them know their status and how far they are from finishing their meals in order for the valet people to know iwhen to bring the car to them. The payment is also done on the ipad. Now, my question is that: will they leave any tips for the server that just brought the food? since everything is being done through the ipad, I want to know how different it is from using a paper menu and the service that is delivered using the ipad instead. I think it is a good idea for restaurants to have something different, because so many people nowadays use devices and software that it only make people adapt to what they are already used to. I don't think all restaurants should do that, because not

This article is about the mobile network technology (including software and hardware) now playing a significant role in the hospitality industry. Hotels use more mobile technology for their marketing and reservation will come out obviously advantage among the competitors. For example, the Google Maps is growing very fast, and its software on the mobile has become the most popular travelling tool for the users in recent months. People use this software as they ask for dinner recommendations, view maps and turn-by-turn directions. What is more, travelers they can use other software in their mobile to watch proprietary videos highlighting hotel amenities and area attractions. As the mobile network technology is growing so fast today, the hotels should make some revolution for their marketing or booking and reservation system. First of all, the hotel should ensure they have a website for the mobile device which can be smooth and functioned well. Addition, for the marketing department, hotels can offer some discount for the travelers who use the mobile software for booking in advance. Because of the locating function in the mobile, hotels can collect those data in their data house which will be useful to customer data analyzing. What is more, the mobile technology is continuously changing, the hotels should follow the trend, and pay attention for the technology renew which will help to attract more customers.

This article talks about the benefit of having Energy management system. Wisuite USA technology can save owner money by using their energy management system. The system interface with the PMS to adjust the temperature of a guest room when a guest check in or out of a hotel. It can also let the engineer department know when to change the filter base on the data they get. The data they get from the system can also adjust the room temperature to the guest comfort level. I feel that the this energy saving system is a great system for the hotel industry. It doesn't make sense to leave the air conditioner on at 50 degree Fahrenheit when the guest check out and it save the housekeeping team time from having to adjust the temperature to the right temperature.

Communication technology is constantly evolving around us in everything we use. Nowadays, we no longer communicate face to face. Instead, we use our cellphones, tablets, computers, etc., to communicate with one another. This in turn affects the tourism industry immensely by providing them with a range of possibilities to successfully and effectively communicate with customers. Due to the increase in new technologies, customers now have easy access to tourism companies and what they have to offer. This benefits the industry by providing exposure and easy access to the things they offer. All in all, it's important that the industry evolve hand in hand with technology in order for the industry to embrace all the opportunities that technology has to offer. 

Earlier his week I learned about Proximity Marketing and I am not certain if I like the idea.  According to this article written by Romanov, Proximity Marketing "combines the digital and physical worlds in a new way, offers many advantages to both consumers and retailers. It's an agile ad strategy that allows merchants to make changes on the fly to improve message effectiveness and reach sales targets on specific items. It provides amazing consumer insights." Sounds like a great concept; it uses mobile devices, which most people have, to send an alert once shoppers are within range advising that bargains are available.  The consumer then has the choice to accept (or not) the message, which could be a simple discount or even an interactive game.  The consumer's privacy is protected as it is at no cost to them.  This can potentially increase retailer sales, at a lower costs, and produces data on consumer buying habits.  Win-Win. The issue I have with this is the overall multitude of alerts received from various retails.  I am not concerned about privacy issues; it is more of an annoyance issue. 

I actually like this idea because I shop aimlessly. When I'm in the radius of a sale I get excited!!. It makes it easy to choose which store I will go into. It will be great if you can turn the alert on and off. On days I'm not shopping I don't want the alerts to go off. That can be distracting and annoying.

Proximity Marketing is changing how retail stores are going to be "selling" themselves. Sending text messages and offering discounts to drag you into their stores is what they're going to start doing.

This article is about a group called Worldcom PR group and they assist a variety of different groups and organizations in their communication skills with the customers in their market, and their competition. This company has realized the changes happening within the hospitality industry and they are prepared to help and consulate different groups and companies.

This article is about the InterContinental Hotel needs for a Human Resources management system that allows them to optimize the human resources department operations. A system that allows managing reports and analysis of employees information, payrolls, resume, calculations, and other. The hotel chain InterContinental looked for software vendors that provide their needs and Sky Bayan was the software they tried and ended up working with successful results.

Northwind launched its Maestro iPad Xpress Check-In App at HITEC 2012. The system offers personalized mobile check in and check out with remote access. The system is able to perform all the functions of a wired terminal anywhere a wireless signal can be found. It offers personalized up sell and room changes as well as credit card payments which are PCI compliant. The app can also check in large groups who are attending a conference or a tour group.