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Merlin Software has launched a new property management system software for Vacation Ownership. The software uses RCI interface and is one of the first to use the RCI interface for PMS. RCI launched Deposit Simplification Interface in 2012, which linked its system to an external property management system. Merlin Software is one of the first companies to use this link in a PMS. Users of Merlin's newest software can make deposits, which will be automatically validated and deposited into the cloud based software. I think this is an interesting software development in the PMS world. The ability for real time deposit verification makes the customers life easier because they will know if their deposit went through or not. I feel the system is easier since much of it is automatic and can help save time because inbound guest lists and reservations will enter the system in real time. This is a system many people can take advantage of from resorts to multi-site complexes. It makes vacation ownership easier for individuals.

This article is about Merlin Software's newest addition, Merlin Software for Vacation Ownership. This property management software is ideal for everything from single site resorts to multi-site developments. It's also the first cloud-based software served on demand. It's accessibility allows users to access the service through any internet connection."Our team worked incredibly hard on this project because we understood the huge benefits it can bring to our clients who are RCI affiliates," said Mike Pnematicatos, chief architect at Merlin Software. I think that Merlin Software for Vacation Ownership will prove to be very beneficial for the hospitality industry. The ability to have a cloud-based service will allow for seamless remote access for management. In addition, the software will streamline the process of placing new products in the marketplace and creating appropriate marketing packages.

This article talked about Jamaican hotels are going  to upgrade their facilities' service with new technology which allowing visitors to access various hospitality options throught applciations on their smart phone.  Nowadays a lot of hotels they public their products based on this technology. Local mobile service provider Digicel on collaboration with New jersey based telecommunications company Avaya and Pennsylvania based mobile technology company Movitas, revealed the new technology to hotel industry representative during a recent hospitality breakfast at the Haif Moon resort. it sounds really convenient , I mean based on several platforms like that for example Black Berry Android and on IOS any smart phone or tablet. it could be used widely not just for hotels also other business.

More businesses moving to solar energy and this is just one of the opportunities to make hotels and other accommodation type operations more environmentally friendly. Technologies best use is when a totally new development is engineered for the lowest environment impact but excellent results are achieved by refurbishing existing hotels. As consumers demand more eco-friendly vacation choices, the tourism industry is responding with energy-efficient and carbon friendly resorts and hotels. The hotel says the output from the system will help reduce New Jersey's CO2 emissions by 10,000 tons over the next 30 years, and will help lessen oil dependence by at least 749 barrels annually.

E-marketing is not unfamiliar for us and it has become a powerful tool for hotels to promote themselves. Hotels can make profit from it if it is applied in a proper way. This article introduces a successful example that IHG focuses on developing apps and mobil features to engage with guests throughout their journey and the monthly revenue from mobile booking reaches over $20 million. IHG's mobile strategy focuses on connecting with guests at all touch points throughout their travel planning and stay experience not just on the first step of room booking. IHG will continue their mobil strategy with launch of the Priority Club Rewards app for iPad that can help guests easily find and book rooms, check rates and increase flexibility to manage their reservation and view member details. This provides guests great convince and leaves them great feeling about this brand. Some new features, functions and offers will be customized for different category of guests such as corporate guests and leisure guests in IHG's e-marketing plan. So the efficiency in targeting the right market is increased. IHG benefit a lot from e-marketing and is multiplying more methods in this area to keep up with the trend. Success of IHG in e-marketing can be a good example for other hoteliers.

Having a clear understand of what makes a great hotel, resort, or conference centre and how to run it profitably is an essential part for a successful management company. Benchmark Hospitality International win the market through its day-to-day management decisions on the numbers. They built a  centralized 'private cloud' technology hub and data gathering platform based on which the managers can make decisions every morning while not wait until month end or later to see property financials. The private cloud helps to reduce its ownership costs and to protect data. Benchmark also uses the Internet-enabled Profitvue enterprise back office system from Aptech Computer System to centralized property accounting.  This is technology plays an important part of hotel operations. The Profivue back office accounting system is internet-enabled, so a PC is the only back-office hardware. The same for the front office systems. It is a great saving for its owners. Since Profivue is flexible enough for Benchmark to have a standard chart of accounts and general ledger for all its properties, Benchmark can quickly integrate a new property into Benchmark's processes. It just bring financial team members from other properties, who are familiar with the system and chart and G/L. So a new property can be ran very quickly without the usual hardware and software installation and staff training. Another advantage of this system is that Benchmark's financial stockholders, management teams, and guests benefit a lot from it, so they always support these innovations, which can later stimulate the company's success. Applying new technology in operation management can help company win a larger market share and develop fast.

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts brand has been recognized by L2 Think Tan's Digital IQ Index: Hotels for the use of plenty digital platforms. By analyzing the needs and wants of guest and potential customers Four Seasons decided to invest in technology obtaining great results. "We are thrilled to be recognized by L2 for our commitment to transforming our guest experience through digital and social media platforms," said Susan Helstab, executive vice president, marketing, Four Seasons. Four Seasons saw the great influence technology has in the way we conduct business and communicate therefore the brand applied the newest technology to create a competitive advantage among its competitive set. "The L2 study reflects just how meaningful this is to the guest experience, and solidifies the importance of Four Seasons continual advancement in the digital realm." Some of the recent innovations Four Season applied to the properties are the new website FourSeasons.com that includes real-time search and videos. It also includes maps, Facebook, and blogs among others. Creating a powerful and global social presence in YouTube, Facebook and Twitter that gives them more publicity, Innovating with Emerging Platforms and Mobile Access "The brand has seen 110% growth year over year of business booked through iPhones and 200% increase via iPads." Four Seasons is attracting more groups, leisure and commercial demand thanks to its technology.

The La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club in California has had many problems with time cards for their employees over the past several years. They used to use swipe cards with bar-codes to tell when people were coming in and out of work but there are a lot of problems with that technology. If people misplaced their cards or knew they were going to be late so gave it to a co-worker to punch them in is not a very smart thing to have in the hotel. After a lot of problems with this system management finally went in a new direction. They decided to move to newer technology and go with Biometrics. The hotel now has a hand reader system that makes every employee get there hand measured to clock in. This technology measured length, width, thickness, and surface area of the hand to store in the system so it knows each persons hand every time they go to clock in any time there after. When going to clock in the system asks for the employee number and then is ready for your hand on the little screen for your scan. The entire process of this takes under 1 minute. This technology of the HandPunch 3000 not only allows the employees to clock in but also allows management to collect data for pay codes, tips collected, and to allow the employees to go back and view their past times in and out. This system is a very green way to go in the hotel industry because there is no paper for records of clock in times, and there are no swipe cards that need to be made for clock in times. Ever since this hotel got the HandPunch 3000 they have not had issues of other employees clocking in other people. The system of course had some glitches to it in the beginning but they were fixed immediately while the staff was there installing it. My only question to this article that is not answered is : since it is a machine that has to be plugged in, what happens if the power goes out? Can employees still clock in to work because the hotel still is functioning?

KingSmart is a popular and successful HPMS because of its automatic, flexible, and customised. Similar with most HPMSs, it can be installed in any types of hospitality establishements. At the same time, it can help each departments within the hotel finish their work more efficiently. It can cover all aspects of daily operation in a hotel such as reservation & registration, group handling, yeild management, sale & marketing, housekeeping modules, revenue management, and so on. Among these aspects, I think some of its applications are more necessary in modern hospitality environment. First of all, KingSmart allows us to run a hotel in its maximum capacity through its powerful, comprehensive, and flexible tools. In addition, managers can increase the profit without any other efforts except using this smart system. KingSmart can force the operaton toward the most profitable rate depending on some marketing strategies installed by managers before. All of the other works are processed by KingSmart automatically. Another automatic application of this system is that it can assign and check in of multiple rooms by one touch of button. In my opinion, it is more important for group reservation of different preferences and behaviors. At last, it establishes a connection between the hotel and customers. Through sending some emails or messages, the hotel can target and keep some loyal groups easier. In a word, KingSmart has so many common benefits with similar softwares and some of its own advantages. It is a good choice for hotels, resorts, and other hospitality properties.

Ecotourism is usually perceived as a form of alternative tourism distinguished in three ways from other forms of tourism. It emphasizes relatively undisturbed natural environments, it serves as a focus of attraction. Interaction with nature is motivated by a desire to appreciate or learn about the attraction. Most guests at ecotourism resorts aren't hard-core environmentalists, several people at Jungle Bay emphasized that they weren't "greenies," but they were impressed by the nature: the density of the rainforest and the views of Dominica's coastline, with its few swimmable beaches, ferocious surf and massive cliffs.

In this article, it talks about all the new ways hotels are using technology to bring in more customers. They are trying to make everyone's stay as pleasant as possible, one example that they talked about is using in iPads to keep their guests entertained while waiting. The Royal Mansour in Marrakech has now set up every room with touch screen walls that allow guests to control the temperature and the lighting in the room. Another resort in Nantucket offers their guests Flip video Camcorders that they can use at their property, the guest can record all the different things that they have done throughout the week, they can record everything from the crazy storms to a beautiful hike that they did with their family! The last hotel that they talked about in the article was the Andaz 5th Avenue, this hotel allows guest to skip the front check out and they can just check in from the elevator with their credit card on the way to their room. This article really opened up my eyes and see that technology really is changing the way that we live!

With sustainability at the forefront of hotel operators and investors hotels are becoming conscious of the guests needs as more and more travelers are requiring and are staying at properties that are serious about environmental conservation. The article highlighted the fact hotels are big consumers of energy, therefore have construction that are LEED certified will not only benefit the environment but also the bottom line of investors.

Travel Weekly takes a look at hotels taking real initiatives to their commitment to going green, especially in Sin City. Hotel groups are looking not to save money through transparent initiatives asking guests to simply reuse their towels, rather the article looks at "hotel owner-developers to invest in systems that cut energy usage, save water, and reduce waste". It seems in addition to other environmentally conscious west coast cities, Vegas has set a standard by setting goals for increased recycling, decreased energy consumption, switching over to LED bulbs, composting food waste, reducing overall carbon footprint and emissions. In light of continuing green development, Sabre Holdings has launched an Eco-Certified Hotel Program taking the lead out of the other four major GDS's to tip their hat to eco-friendly hotels. As travelers, GDS's, hotels, travel websites, and developers alike place greater emphasis on the preference for environmentally conscious lodgings, the more likely the industry is going to continue adopting these measures.

Hotels are becoming more green world wide. MGM hotels is on board with a green initiative. Hotels electricity and water add up because they have to cool a building , clean and maintain the hotel. IT costs about 800 per room annually in electricity and water costs. MGM hotels reduced the electrivity they use which can help power 12, 000 houses. HOtels are also trying to reduce its carbon emissions. Although as the article states " its very difficult fot hotels to be trully green by their nature" every little bit helps.

Use of property management system PMS cost money in terms of upfront investment or maintenance or fees for using a vendor's system but the money generated by the use of the system outweighed the costs. Hotel rooms are perishable and any empty room means waste of resource and therefore using PMS to fill up as many rooms as possible is wise. Likewise empty restaurant costs the owner money to cover the fixed cost including the minimum labor to keep it open.

The CEO of the award-winning Sandals Resorts International gave top marks to LIME, the Caribbean division of Cable & Wireless Communications. He remarks the importance of having the best in communication services in the hospitality industry. The executive Vice President of the Bahamas Hotel Association also welcomed the hotel industry improvements in telecommunications.

Starwood hotel &Resorts Los Cabos have introduced 3-D online planning program to display the event details such as food and beverage, function space and table setting for the event planners. The event planners can design their own event setting by click the mouse. "view in 3D" button will offer a virtual 3D view of the event. Planners experience the event from the guest view. When all the event details are complete, event planners submit it online. The hotel will respond within 24 hours with a price quote. This technology makes the planning easier. It is cost effective way for the event planners to control all the event details in short time.

This technology sounds great! With this technology we can preview our event. That's makes the planning easier. What's more important we can intuitive see how does the design looks like.

In the last 5 to 6 years, MGM Resorts Intl. has instituted a new cloud-based booking technology for its Las Vegas properties called GroupMAX. It was initially used as a way to work jointly with group planners for two of the Las Vegas properties but as a result of the technology's success, the software was implemented in other hotels in the Las Vegas area. All in all, this software enables hotels and planners to access all booking information of numerous hotels in a single location. The article states numerous benefits using the GroupMAX technology - which above all increase operating efficiency and profitability. I believe this technology is extremely beneficial to the corporation, especially because of the enormous amounts of group reservations they have annually among their various properties. Though it may be somewhat costly initially, the benefits far exceed any costs the company encounters.

Highlight: IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) is inviting preferred business accounts across Asia Pacific to move to a dynamic pricing model, guaranteeing corporate travellers to always pay less than best unrestricted rates at its InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn® Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express in the region. My Description: InterContinental Hotels Group is making efforts to turn its original accounting and pricing system into a more dynamic and flexible one, which can make more market-sensitive hotel rates according to the demand situation. Currently , IHG is trying to increase the scale of market-sensitive rates to the traditional contract rates. Therefore Corporate travel managers should feel confident they have access to the best possible rates in hotels of IHG. This model guarantees they will pay less than any other unrestricted rates. One advantage of this market-sensitive accounting and pricing system to annualized rates is to respond to unexpected market condition. This dynamic pricing system will not only help corporate managers to reduce related costs but also bring more convenience to corporate travelers as the increase of booking channels. The application of IHG's dynamic pricing system bring many positive feedbacks, especially as these corporate customers usually end up paying less than their RFP-contracted counterparts

This is another innovation utilizing the cloud based computing in the hospitality industry. I am delighted to see advancement of the industry with implementing technology. The possibilities seem endless. With this planning platform, the world is really on our finger tips.

A company in Honolulu upgraded its accounting systems to a more secure and cloud based system. This system is user friendly, custom to each company, and easy to navigate.

Hotel industries have been under attack from excessive hacking, as seen with Hilton being targeted for private financial information from guests. In 2014, it was noticed that hackers had been targeting Hilton throughout the course of 17 weeks. They state that the industry itself has not really focused budgeting on cyber security. It seems that the process is done by integrating a virus into these hotels POS system. The virus was actively attacking the Micros program, which was being used in more than 300,000 hotels and resorts. An ultimate treasure chest for information, some of which was not even encrypted. In addition, the virus appears in the system as a legitimate software, and then it obtains over 90 percent of stored information. This hacking is being conducted by organized groups, who moved from the retail industry because it had indeed improved its cyber security. With hotels it seems that the concept has not been taken as seriously. There are many hotels susceptible to such an attack. As long as there is a sales software, then someone is looking to get into it. A person could be sitting inside of your location, and infiltrating a guests' wireless internet, and they would not even know. In order to engage this threat, locations must be proactive in attempting to stop what is occurring. The only question is, how much are they willing to invest in cyber security?

This article emphasizes the positive and negative aspects of the hospitality industry adopting to sustainable practices. It recognizes that this industry is in the business of making money, while appoints the importance of doing so conscientiously, respecting the environment. It shows the steps that the organizations should take on its journey to action. I believe that sustainability should be a business imperative and not a lifestyle choice, as the sustained interest among consumers in tourism products and services are continuously increasing. That should be beneficial for the organization, positively affecting the operating revenue.

The article discusses the many ways the IT world is finding new ways to be sustainable in the hospitality industry. Changing the way a hotel runs by introducing e-mails to guest and other companies to reduce the paper flow or allowing guest to do mobile check-ins can reduce a lot of paper waste. Also, having guest use their phones as key cards for their rooms can aid in avoiding wasting and needing to create key cards. By hotels having an energy saving system, they reduce electrical waste by having computers on low power consumption mode. One main thing the article mentioned that I personally see a lot of hotels doing is digital advertising. Instead of relying on paper advertisement, hotels rely heavily on ads on social medias, facebook, google, and third party vendors.

This article discusses the IT green movement that has been in action since the rise of technology and ways on how IT can go green. Some opportunities in the green IT movement include the following: - Using IT responsibly and effectively to reduce water, energy, and paper consumption. This gives IT teams to take advantage of a few technical enhancements within their hotels to provide key cards available on smart phones, email to reduce paper, and digital signage. - Deploying effective technology practices such as Energy Star compliance to shut down computers automatically after periods of inactivity and server virtualization. This would mean for everything to be on one common server, and companies can save money on computer hardware and power consumption. - Tackling e-waste and deploying recycling technologies to reduce environmental waste and impacts. This could be implementing by introducing a safe recycling system for used hardware. - Digital marketing practices. This could be like using digital media to save money or using social media to encourage guests about the green practices that the hotel is implementing. - Marketing strategies to report and promote green practices. This could be having the business properly use marketing strategies to target these environmentally conscious market and find ways to promote green practices to this market segment. These are all very effective ways for IT teams to go green within their hospitality businesses. These green IT projects will need approval from top management and investment in time and resources.