Hotel Online  Special Report


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High-Speed Internet Leader Broadband Hospitality
Expands Holiday Inn Express Relationship, Adds
13th Hotel to Customer Mix 

 
YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO � January 21, 2004 � Broadband Hospitality, one of the hospitality industry�s fastest growing high-speed Internet access (HSIA) providers, has signed an agreement with Elden Motels L.P. to install and service a high-speed Internet system in its Holiday Inn Express Vermilion (Ohio) property. Broadband Hospitality will install high-speed connections in the hotel�s 66 guestrooms and meeting room. 
 
Broadband Hospitality also announced the installation of a high-speed Internet system in the Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites in Ashland, Ohio, another Elden Motels property. That installation, completed last month, includes the hotel�s 89 guestrooms and meeting rooms.

Youngstown, Ohio-based Broadband Hospitality now has 13 Holiday Inn Express hotels under contract. As part of the brand�s franchise requirements, each of the more than1,250 Holiday Inn Express hotels in the


Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites
Ashland, Ohio
United States must provide high-speed Internet service by the end of 2004. 

�Holiday Inn Express hotels are a great fit for our company,� says Vince Lucci, president of Broadband Hospitality. �We meet all of the Holiday Inn Express requirements for HSIA and share the brand�s commitment to be an industry leader, innovator and provider of the highest level of customer service.�

Elizabeth Elden, managing partner of Elden Motels, says the transition to a hotel with high-speed Internet service has been �virtually seamless.�

�Our guests are really enjoying it,� she says. �Broadband Hospitality was very straightforward with us. The process can be very confusing but Broadband made the process more manageable. It has been a pleasure working with them.�

To market the addition of HSIA, Elden says she intends to include mentions of it on-line, in Holiday Inn Express�s worldwide directory, on the hotel�s marquee and over the phone during the reservation process.

HSIA Boosts Occupancy Rate

Peggy Russo, general manager of the Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites in Ashland, Ohio, said her property was losing business to area competitors because it previously did not offer high-speed Internet service.

�It is increasing our occupancy rate,� she says. �Instead of traveling 20 minutes away to get the service, people are stopping here. It�s fantastic. It�s one of the best investments we could have made for the hotel. Every day we get favorable comments from guests.�

Russo says that she called owners of some of the other hotels that Broadband Hospitality was working with before making her final vendor decision.

�Broadband�s other customers said they were very pleased with the company and the service that is provided,� she says.

Ed Santor, national sales manager for Broadband Hospitality, says owners and managers of midsize hotels are finally realizing that high-speed Internet service is something they absolutely need.

�Franchise companies and guests are demanding it,� he says. �There�s an urgency based on a supply and demand situation. We have hoteliers telling us they are losing business because they do not have it.�

Service Support Provided Around the Clock

Broadband Hospitality offers 24-hour help desk support every day of the year.

�That level of customer support, combined with the affordable packages that we offer, separates Broadband Hospitality from its competitors,� Lucci says.

Broadband Hospitality now has more than 150 hotels with more than 16,000 rooms installed or under contract. In addition to hotels in Vermilion and Ashland, Ohio, Broadband Hospitality has Holiday Inn Express customers in the following locations: Garden City, Dodge City and Hutchinson, Kan.; San Diego; Columbia, Mo.; Oakwood, St. Clairsville, Streetsboro, Gahanna, Brookpark and Columbus, Ohio.

About Elden Motels L.P.:

Elden Motels L.P. owns and manages four properties in Ohio: the Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites in Ashland; the Holiday Inn Express in Vermilion; the Motel Plaza in Vermilion; and the Surrey Inn in Ashland. For more information, call Elizabeth Elden at (440) 967-8770.

About Broadband Hospitality:

Founded in 1993, Broadband Hospitality�s mission is to help hotels and restaurants leverage the full power of the Internet by providing complete, high-quality, high-performance Internet solutions. In addition to traditional wired solutions, Broadband also installs wireless "hot spots." These hot spots typically include areas such as lobbies, breakfast areas and meeting rooms. Broadband has partnered with some of the leading wireless hardware companies to implement Wi-Fi technology and can offer the best solution for each property.

In addition to providing high-speed Internet access solutions for restaurants, guestrooms, business centers, kiosks and conference rooms, Broadband Hospitality offers print services (printing guest documents via the in-room Internet connection), e-commerce platforms for hotel chains, video on demand, videoconferencing and voice over IP. 

Broadband Hospitality offers a wide range of voice solutions, including local service. The company also is an authorized Mitel dealer that installs and services hotel phone systems. Because of its strategic partnerships with companies such as AT&T, Qwest Mitel and Tut Systems, Broadband Hospitality can offer its customers the best possible telecommunications and network solutions at the best possible price.

Broadband Hospitality is the preferred HSIA vendor of the Ohio Hotel & Lodging Assn. At its convention in April 2003, the OH&LA presented Broadband Hospitality with its Stars of the Industry Allied Member of the Year award. Broadband Hospitality is also a member of the Pennsylvania Tourism and Lodging Assn. The company meets the brand standards for HSIA for Hilton Garden Inn hotels and most standards set by leading franchisors. For more information about Broadband Hospitality, go to www.broadbandhospitality.com or call Vince Lucci, president, at (330) 629-8848. 

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Contact:
Vince Lucci, President
Broadband Hospitality
(330) 629-8848
E-mail: [email protected]
www.broadbandhospitality.com

Elizabeth Elden, Managing Partner
Elden Motels L.P.
(440) 967-8770
E-mail: [email protected]

Glenn Hasek, President
Hasek Communications
(216) 476-9663; cell: (216) 702-0334
E-mail: [email protected]
www.hasekcom.com

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Also See: Alliance Chooses Broadband Hospitality�s Valu-Pak-24 � a New, Low-Cost High-Speed Internet Package � for Eight of its Midwest Hotels / January 2004
Broadband Hospitality Finalizes Agreement to Supply High-Speed Internet Service to Historic Mountain View Inn / September 2003
Broadband Hospitality Signs Deal to Supply Boardman, Ohio�s Buffalo Wild Wings Bar & Grill with High-Speed Internet System / September 2003
Broadband Hospitality Signs Agreement to Provide High-Speed Internet Service to Doubletree Denver North / August  2003
Broadband Hospitality Inks Agreement to Supply Doubletree Hotel Boise Riverside with High-Speed Internet Service / June 2003
High-Speed Internet Leader Broadband Hospitality Becomes Vendor of Choice for Hotels with 100 Rooms or Less / June  2003
High-Speed Internet Leader Broadband Hospitality Reaches 10,000-Room Milestone / April 2003
High-Speed Internet Leader Broadband Hospitality Partners With Award Winning Holiday Inn Boardman / Feb 2003
Broadband Hospitality Finishes 2002 With Flurry of Agreement Activity / Dec 2002
Ohio�s Broadband Hospitality Emerges as High-Speed Internet Access Leader / Nov 2002


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