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Global distribution systems (GDSs) are computerized networks/platforms that centralize services and provide travel-related transactions. They cover everything from airline tickets, to car rentals, to hotel rooms, and more. Global distribution systems were originally set up for use by the airlines but were later extended to travel agents. Today, the systems allow users to purchase tickets from multiple different providers or airlines. Global distribution systems are also the back end of most Internet-based travel services.

To see how global distribution systems work, take a closer look at one of the largest—Amadeus. Amadeus was created in 1987 as a joint venture between Air France, Iberia, Lufthansa, and SAS and has grown considerably over the past twenty-five years.

There's no doubt that global distribution systems will play an important part in the travel landscape for many years to come, but their traditional role is changing and being challenged by all the changes taking place in the travel industry. Two important considerations impacting the role of global distribution systems are the growth of online travel websites that offer price comparisons and the increased push from airlines and other travel service providers to encourage consumers to make bookings directly via their websites.

The data breach hitting Marriott Hotels Group was huge. The joint-second largest to have ever taken place, in fact, after Yahoo’s disastrous 2013 breach (and on par with Yahoo’s 2014 breach). While the amount of data that was taken from Starwood Hotels’ reservation systems (a company acquired by Marriott in 2016) was vast, what’s most staggering is the fact the breach went undetected for four years, and an acquisition also took place but the alarm still wasn’t raised. Since news originally broke of the release, it’s also been revealed that the hotel group’s own security team was hit by an attack in June 2017. Clearly something has gone amiss.

The issue is compounded by the fact that security is still not high enough up the list of priorities for business leaders. Despite well-known organizations frequently hitting the headlines for data breaches (in 2018 alone we’ve had Ticketmaster, Quora, British Airways, Under Armour and plenty more) and a ‘when not if’ warning  being peddled by the security industry for years, many businesses still haven't got to grips with just how critical proper security is. The fact that reviewing security may not have been part of the acquisition process of Starwood by Marriott – and if it was, not well enough – is further evidence of this apparent blindness to the impact of poor security. So, what’s going wrong? A research report from security company Bromium earlier this year suggested that the average large enterprise spends $16.7 million per annum on security, with the vast majority found to be on ‘the human cost of maintaining cyber security systems’. While most firms clearly aren’t 2,000 people sized enterprises, the research provides a good indication that spending on security isn’t the issue. Instead, it’s people.

We need to look at different approaches to skills development and, in many ways, imitate cyber criminals themselves who are continually iterating ideas to solve problems, rewarding perseverance and curiosity as well as encouraging further development. The ‘white hats’ need to approach their roles the same way – not rely on what they heard in a classroom six months previously.

HONG KONG/SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese guests at Marriott International, the world’s largest hotel chain, may soon be able to check in with a quick scan of their facial features. The chain will work in a joint venture with Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group to test facial recognition check-ins at two China hotels this month, the firms said on Wednesday, with ambitions for a global rollout later. China is spearheading the use of facial recognition for everything from helping control major live events to ordering fast-food, but also bolstering a growing domestic surveillance system that has raised fears among human rights activists of privacy being invaded.

Fortunately, new technology lets restaurants adopt some of ecommerce’s best practices. From an IT perspective, this requires four key elements:   A system to close the loop at the guest level on promotional offers. It’s not enough to have a POS discount key for “Father’s Day promo” anymore. You need to know which dad (or mom!) responded to that offer, what they bought, and who they brought in with them.   The ability (either directly or through your credit card processor) to access payment data in order to identify individual guests when they return. This data set is essential – it’s the lifeblood of ecommerce. Fortunately, the ecommerce players have pioneered safe, secure ways to get at data without compromising PCI safeguards.   A guest-centric data warehouse to store all the key data sets — check level POS data, payment data, marketing data, loyalty program data if available, reservations, online ordering, guest responses, and third party data such as Prizm or Mosaic.   An analytics layer. The requirements here go way beyond static or standardized reporting. Marketing needs to be able to cut data in an ever-changing variety of ways to identify key patterns and segments.   Marketing, in turn, must partner with IT on determining goals. What is the restaurant trying to accomplish and what can be left out? Take joint meetings with IT to look at vendors to help give a sense of what’s possible. But then let IT do their job. Next, build the business case. Moving to a data driven marketing strategy will require shifting budget from other media, or finding new budget dollars. Determine appropriate metrics and the desired payoff. Setting up high level, high visibility “report cards” is critical. For example, “Our 2015 goal is to grow the annual spend of our top three customer groups by 4%, thereby delivering $17.5M of incremental sales.” That will get the CFO’s attention and the goal is doable. Finally, design and execute the marketing plan. That will likely require a trained data and analytics expert, and/or a close partnership with a company that analyzes data 24/7. Either way, it’s important to not over-reach in the beginning. Year one is about becoming familiar with the data, drawing insights, and learning a new language—segments, deciles, annual spend, customer acquisition costs, and lifetime value. The good news is there is usually a great deal of quick wins, such as offer optimization.     Introducing data-driven marketing may seem like a daunting task, but the ability to predictably drive sales should incent even the most cautious. The benefits of bringing an early mover are huge. These restaurants will have more data to work with two to three years out. More data, gathered over a longer period of time, becomes its own competitive advantage. Just ask Amazon.

Now devices are evolving to keep up with the ever-increasing introduction of specialized mobile-applications for every field, particularly hospitality.

Push-to-talk over cellular (PoC) has already impacted wireless communications and hardware development with the introduction of Bluetooth equipped two-way radios, transitional gateways for hybrid systems and smart phone adoption.

Mobile apps are being developed daily to fulfill sector-specific needs and are easily accessible over internet (Wi-Fi)

“We can’t get people in quick enough. We can’t get them properly trained. They’re, in some cases, not as good as their predecessors because their predecessors have more experience,” Institute of Culinary Education’s Dean of Restaurant and Hospitality Management at Rick Camac said. “We’re bringing in some people who are pure entry level and we’re trying to teach them the business of hospitality and without enough time to do adequate training.”

“If there is a burger joint in New York that has a great following and wants to expand, we can upload that recipe in Naperville, and customers will get the exact same burger,” Nala Robotics President and Co-founder Ajay Sunkara told Restaurant Hospitality. On the West Cost there’s a robot restaurant focused on Chinese food that will be opening.

“We see Carry as a kind of harvesting sidekick for workers. It’s an autonomous harvesting companion,” Reddy said. “What it can do in the real world is transport up to 500 lbs. of crops in all terrain and all weather. It can increase production efficiency by up to 30 percent, which means it pays for itself in only 80 days.”

The joint solution will help hotels fight chargebacks and fraud by ensuring that no one – aside from the cardholder – can see a person’s full credit-card information

Through this integration partnership, TransForm has a direct connection to Maestro PMS, ensuring all payment data will be automatically posted into the appropriate ledger to align with the correct guest folio, group master, or other account in real time.

When hotels implement best practices and leverage PCI compliant solutions to protect payment card data, it will have a positive impact on the bottom line.”