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Sheraton® Hotels & Resorts Unveils New Online Experience
for Guests Powered by Microsoft's Bing


Specially Designed, Branded Portal Allows Guests to Discover Their Destination with Just One Click

 

White Plains, NY – August 4, 2010 – Sheraton Hotels & Resorts today unveiled a new online experience for guests designed by Microsoft’s new decision engine, Bing, featuring intuitive tools that promotes a sense of discovery and captures the “pulse” of the local destination, helping guests seamlessly navigate their stay.  Designed as a social, interactive online global destination, the new Sheraton Guest Portal powered by Bing” will be featured worldwide in the “Link@SheratonSM experienced with Microsoft®” in addition to in-room web access. As part of the brand’s $6 billion revitalization effort, Sheraton Hotels have redesigned nearly 400 lobbies worldwide with the addition of its innovative Link@Sheraton experience with Microsoft, a unique lobby lounge that enables today’s travelers access to information and technology for work, leisure and social networking. 
 
The new portal was specially designed to provide guests with an intuitive, tailored on-line experience specific to their destination – like having a personal concierge in the palm of your hand.  As part of the new online experience, guests will find constantly updated relevant content, specific to each Sheraton location, such as local maps and the top search results for area restaurants, attractions, special events and services. With this pertinent information right at their fingertips, guests are able to make smarter, faster decisions on the road whether they’re looking for a local favorite to grab a bite in Boston or the top shopping tour in Milan.  The new portal uses a mix of rich imagery with a dashboard of dynamic tools that aggregates the top items requested from the concierge and makes them easy to find.  With one click of the mouse guests can print a boarding pass, find the nearest entertainment and must see sites,  get the local weather forecast, read the top news stories of the day or discover more about their hotel, such as the restaurant hours and spa offerings. 
 
“Microsoft has been an integral partner during our revitalization of the Sheraton brand from the beginning with the launch of the Link@Sheraton powered by Microsoft,” said Hoyt Harper, Senior Vice President, Global Brand Management for Sheraton Hotels & Resorts.  “Utilizing the Bing technology we’ve created a portal that will provide our guests with a geographically relevant and unique online experience whether they’re in the lobby or their room.”
 
“We’re thrilled to work with Starwood to bring the powerful decision making tools of Bing to Sheraton customers,” said Yusuf Mehdi, senior vice president, Online Services Division, Microsoft. “When you are on the road for business or vacation and staying at a Sheraton hotel or resort, Bing will be a great asset for helping customers make important decisions on the go, including local search tools that help you decide where to eat, what to see, and an immersive mapping experience to help customers get around.”
 
The Link@Sheraton experienced with Microsoft and the Sheraton Guest Portal powered by Bing  are signature components of Sheraton’s $6 billion global effort to enhance the brand and differentiate the guest experience at properties worldwide. The Link’s unique lobby lounge enables today’s travelers to stay connected with instant access to information and technology for work, leisure and social networking. Designed as a social environment, The Link invites guests to interact with each other while they check their email, research local attractions and even print boarding passes using free Wi-Fi and Internet-enabled computer stations.  It also features a Link Café, televisions and daily newspapers.  Nearly 50% of all Sheraton guests use the Link@Sheraton during their stay – that is more than eat breakfast, use the gym or go to the bar.
 
About Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with 1000 properties in nearly 100 countries and territories with 145,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. Starwood Hotels is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels, resorts and residences with the following internationally renowned brands: St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, W®, Westin®, Le Méridien®, Sheraton®, Four Points® by Sheraton, and the recently launched Aloft®, and Element SM.  Starwood Hotels also owns Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com.
 

(Note: This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities regulations. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or events and involve risks and uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated at the time the forward-looking statements are made. These risks and uncertainties are presented in detail in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Although we believe the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that our expectations will be attained or that results and events will not materially differ. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.)  The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

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Contact:

NJFPR
Jaclyn Letschert
Senior Account Executive
35 East 21st Street, 8th Floor
New York, NY 10010
212-228-1500 x17
www.njfpr.com

 

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Also See: Starwood Hotels’ Initiates Worldwide $4 billion Expansion for Sheraton Hotels & Resorts Adding Roughly 50 Hotels and more than 20,000 Guestrooms in the Next Three Years; Brand will Nearly Double Footprint in China - 24 New Hotels in Pipeline / February 2010

Starwood Hotels Focusing on International Growth and Conversion Opportunities with Majority of 2010 Activity Happening in the Asia Pacific / January 2010

In 1985 Starwood Hotels Opened its First Hotel in China, the Historic Great Wall Beijing Sheraton Hotel, Now Starwood Operates 43 Hotels with 57 Properties Scheduled to Open / August 2008
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