Many things are happening in the industry, so I will keep this short. Jon Inge again has done a fabulous job condensing the news and making is simple to read and understand. Take a few minutes a click on some of the links. Michael Squires has added comments about the IH/MR Show and some of his experiences there. I will see you again at the end with this week�s attempt at humor. Work with me, I will eventually get a good joke. Before I go, I must thank Lisa D�Angelo from Sceptre Hospitality Resources for allowing me to draw the winner of their very creative raffle. They gave away an authentic, signed Steinback Millenium nutcracker, which they nicknamed �Nutsy� at the show. The winner was Fran Tobin, Vice President of the Hibiscus Beach Hotel in St. Croix.  I miss Nutsy already.  I hope he is enjoying living in the Caribbean. 

Now here is the news.  [email protected]

Top o' The News  

Pegasus Buys REZsolutions 

REZsolutions brings a network of more than 50 offices and 2,000 employees touching more than 3 million rooms, 25,000 hotels and 80 brands worldwide. Pegasus Systems provides hotel industry e-commerce/transaction processing solutions and the TravelWeb.com reservations site; its customers include seven of the 10 largest U.S.-based travel agencies and 32,000 hotel properties worldwide. 

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Plenty of survey results this week, showing... The travel-booking experience has significant room for improvement... Planning a trip on the Web is still a difficult, unrewarding hassle, according to an analysis of 20 U.S. travel industry Web sites--Excite, Preview Travel, Priceline and others-- by Quidnunc, a global e-business consultancy. Testing various consumer - oriented scenarios showed that none offered an enticing, hassle-free online experience; some of the highest profile sites rated lowest in user experience, ease of use and an inherent understanding of the needs of visitors to the site, according to Quidnunc. 

Expedia topped the scoring with 36 out of a possible 48 points, with Northwest Airlines being the highest-rated travel supplier at 28 points. These scores are reportedly higher than those from similar research on UK-based sites in July, but still fall a long way from a memorably good experience. Details of the scenarios used for evaluation, and the full results table, are available at http://www.quidnunc.com. 

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From the International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show in New York last week: 

At a panel of presidents representing the economy segment of the hotel market: 

• Dan Daniele, President, Baymont Inns & Suites, forecast that high-speed in-room Internet access will become standard in all hotels, right down to economy and budget brands. 
• Villager Franchise Systems signed an agreement to wire 6,800 franchisees with high-speed Internet access. 
• Georges LeMener, President and CEO, Accor Economy Lodging Group, said his company spends $20 million a year on technology "just to stay competitive." 

The top priority for business travelers in the hotel room of the future, according to a survey sponsored by Kimberley-Clark for the show, was to have a computer with Internet access and a printer in every guestroom (59 %), a request even more important to female business travelers, 68 % of whom rated it their number one choice. 

Other items were: 

• A "smart" phone with Caller ID and e-mail capabilities (13%) 
• Exercise equipment in the room (11%) 
• A conference room off the guest room for meetings (4%) 
• A personal assistant to handle business requests (3%) 
• An electronic "book" with business books, novels, news and stock information, and other data stored in it (3%)

• A restroom Jacuzzi (22%)
• A code for room access, instead of a key or entry card (14%) 
• A home theater set-up with an extensive video library (13%) 
• Spa services, such as aromatherapy and massages, on-demand (11%) 
• Comfort foods, such as ice cream, in an in-room freezer (%)
• Exercise equipment in the room (7%)

Arthur Andersen US Hospitality Industry Team (HIT) has appointed R. David Moon as the partner in charge of its hospitality technology practice. Mr. Moon was formerly CIO and senior VP at Doubletree Hotel Corporation, and VP of technology and systems for Westin Hotels & Resorts. 

Applications Service Provider SynXis Corp, developer of a Web-based hotel reservation management system, has appointed Bernard D. Ellis as Director of Product Management and Distribution for its Hospitality Division. 

Mr. Ellis comes to SynXis after eight years with Micros Systems, Inc., most recently as senior account executive for its Hotel Systems Division. (www.synxis.com) 
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RESERVATIONS  

Internet booking stats take off: The number of Americans who've booked travel online soared by more than 80% to 11 million in the last year, according to The 1999 Travel eCommerce Survey from PhoCusWright. For the first time, the number of online travelers "usually" using offline agencies to buy airline tickets for leisure travel fell below 50% (from 55% to 47%). 

Other key results: 

• 26% have bought travel online. 
• 19% of online travelers "usually" buy airline tickets online, up from 10% last year. 
• 65% of online travelers "shopped around" before buying airline tickets online. 
• Travel is the second most popular e-commerce category, with 45% of online buyers saying they've purchased travel online. It is outpaced only by books, at 54%. 
• About half of those visiting travel sites still just look at fares or availability but purchase that travel offline. 
• 65% of non-buyers say they'd be interested in buying travel online, a significant 20 points ahead of the next most compelling products -- computers and books. 

* * * 
Hotel Software Systems, Ltd. (HSS) has licensed real time online reservations technology from ResExpress, a worldwide provider of private-label, Internet-based reservation solutions. ResExpress will be integrated with both of HSS's Property Management Systems, FrontClerk and ZoomINN.com, its recently-launched private-label Web site service for hotels and hotel groups. 

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Online travel service Preview Travel has formed a broad alliance with Hotel Reservation Network, to make HRN's negotiated hotel room rates available to Preview Travel's over 9 million members. HRN is one of the Internet's major sources of discount hotel accommodations. Under the agreement, HRN properties and discounted rates will be positioned as the preferred hotel booking option in specific cities on Preview Travel, though travelers may continue to choose from Preview Travel's present offering of over 30,000 hotels and motels worldwide. Preview Travel has announced plans to merge with Sabre's Travelocity in the first quarter of 2000. Travelocity.com launched several site enhancements and a 50% increase in network capacity. New features include in-route flight tracking, interactive hotel mapping and an alternate airports feature can automatically search nearby airports within arrival or departure cities for lower airfares, showing savings and driving distances in an interactive window. 

Sabre also announced its Virtually There Web site, a personal travel domain that provides travelers with up-to-the-minute itinerary and destination information via the Internet on specific trips booked through the Sabre system. Sabre handles 350 million bookings per year or nearly 40 percent of all reservations booked through travel agencies throughout the world. A secure domain is created specifically for each confirmed booking, containing the trip itinerary, gate and flight information, and destination information such as weather and maps. 

By year-end, the site will offer selected city overviews, including information on restaurants, shopping, events and attractions; by mid-2000, travelers will be able to create a personal profile which will let them specify which information and offers they'd like to receive. The service will allow travel agencies to offer similar itinerary and destination service to that which consumers can currently find from sites such as Expedia; Sabre reports that more than 75 percent of travel is still booked through travel agents. 

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Publisher Reed Elsevier has filed a lawsuit against Microsoft Corp. and its recent Internet travel spin-off Expedia Inc., alleging breach of contract through violation of Cahners' exclusive rights to provide hotel directory advertising sales support for the Expedia.com Web site, and also alleges conversion and misappropriation of Cahners' proprietary hotel database. The suit seeks injunctions prohibiting Microsoft and Expedia from competing with Cahners in selling hotel directory advertising and blocking them from using the hotel database. 

In another recent suit, Priceline.com sued Microsoft alleging violation of a Priceline patent on its "name your price" consumer buying service on the Internet, by introducing a similar hotel price matching system on Expedia. 

Notwithstanding these and other challenges to Microsoft, its Expedia Inc. travel services company spin off had a spectacular IPO, with its shares soaring more than 280 percent in its first day of public trading. Expedia was formed by Microsoft in 1994 and has been on the Internet since 1996. Though now a separate company, it has a contractual relationship with Microsoft, which remains its majority owner. 

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On-line consolidator Hotel Reservations Network filed a registration with the SEC for an IPO. 

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Omni Hotels upgraded its reservations system to a seamless environment for agents both within and outside the company, using Pegasus Systems' GDS interface. The seamless environment also includes the company's on-line reservations system as well as Pegasus' Internet-based reservations system TravelWeb. 

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GeoPassage launched a highly-interactive online travel site that allows customers to create, customize and book an itinerary from one location. Travelers can browse destination, hotel and tour information, creating their itinerary on-line as they go, or can have the site create a tour automatically from their stated interests and cities/attractions. The tour can then be booked online; GeoPassage makes all arrangements, including hotel bookings, domestic flight reservations, attraction and sightseeing fees, and a personal guide in each city. 

*** 
A couple of unusual new clients for Hotel Data Systems' xenonCRS: the International Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank/Hotel Accommodations Group in Washington, DC, has selected the CRS to manage the highly complex booking needs of all dignitaries, ambassadors, heads of finance and other delegates for its 182 member countries in conjunction with its annual meetings. 

Equally diverse and complex demands can be expected from the clients of HDS' other new client - Best Friends Pet Resorts & Salons Inc. Based in Norwalk, CT, Best Friends provides upscale kennel services for dogs and cats at 35 locations, offering what are essentially upscale health spa resort services. 

*** 
Executive Inn Group Corp. purchased 19% of HARS Systems Inc, and is offering the benefits of its brand membership to all 3,400 independent hotels and car rental companies serviced by HARS' reservations subsidiary VIP International Corp. Executive Inn expects to expand its branded hotel base from its current 10 to 250 VIP-serviced properties by the end of 2003. (www.carsandhotels.com) 

*** 
Internet hotel reservations site Worldres.com has added its first Middle East partner destination to its network - Dubai - through an agreement with the Government of Dubai's Department of Tourism & Commerce Development. The new service allows web visitors to find and reserve rooms at hotels, resorts and furnished apartments in Dubai. WorldRes.com already works with other destination organizations such as the British Tourist Authority, the Alsace Regional Tourist Office, the Hong Kong Hotels Association and over 30 U.S. states. Participating properties will be bookable through the DTCM website as well as through other WorldRes.com partners. 

*** 
U.K. airport operator BAA, which runs London's Heathrow airport, has teamed up with Expedia to offer travel information on its Website. The partnership will give holiday-seeking Internet surfers access to a wide range of hotel, weather and general travel information, in addition to the sites existing flight and airport information. 

*** 
A new vacation-travel site, clik.com, was launched with the intent of forming an Internet community devoted to vacation travel. The site combines travel providers (Delta, Continental, Carnival, PlacesToStay) with community services (from theglobe.com) such as an e-mail club for sharing travel information, a forum where members can post messages about vacation experiences, and a chat room. Future plans include a Travel Agent Affiliates Program, Homepage Builder, Concierge, Shops and a photo gallery. 

*** 
Forte Hotel Group has contracted with lastminute.com to handle reservations made within a week of arrival for its over 250 Meridien, Posthouse and Heritage hotels worldwide. 

*** 
London-based Internet corporate travel manager HotelHub (a division of the Polyglobe Group) has contracted with Pegasus Electronic Distribution for hotel booking capabilities. HotelHub specializes in booking solutions for corporate travelers utilizing their company extranets; the Pegasus deal allows travelers to see only those hotels with which their companies have negotiated special rates. 

*** 
High-end travel Web portal Unexplored.com and leisure-lodging network inntopia.com have agreed to merge, combining inntopia.com's online reservation platform, network of lodges and distribution channels with Unexplored.com's network of travel service providers. The new company will be named Unexplored Travel Network and will operate both existing Web sites. 

*** 
Another "come and get my business" service started up; TravelManagement.com linked its TravelSearch search engine to iWant.com, an Internet company that allows sellers to submit proposals in response to buyer requests. 

Travel buyers looking for vacation packages, cruises, airline tickets and more can register on TravelSearch and list their travel related "wants"; Travel Agents can then sign in, view the listings and offer their options and prices on the request. 

*** 
GDS company Amadeus has announced a "neutral" Electronic Ticket Server, enabling carriers of any size to implement electronic ticketing. Finnair is the first airline to use the service, with testing already underway. 

Amadeus ETS enables airlines to outsource their electronic ticketing development, and, in mid-2000, will provide a neutral environment for interline electronic ticketing. The current lack of agreements between airlines to accept each others tickets is seen as a major hindrance to the widespread adoption of electronic ticketing. 

Amadeus also won a contract from leading U.S. retail group Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to provide on-line airline, car and hotel reservations for its new Website. The site is to be launched in January. 

*** 
Apparently aiming to tackle universal travel sites such as Travelocity and Expedia head-on, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Northwest Airlines and Continental Airlines announced the first multi-airline travel portal, providing online access to airline, hotel, car rental and other travel services in addition to special Internet offers. 

The site is intended to feature published fares from virtually all carriers worldwide, will welcome the posting of Internet fares from other carriers, and will partner with hotels, car rental companies, cruise lines and other travel companies. The site is expected to launch in mid-2000, and will be managed independently of the suppliers; the airlines will still offer their own Web sites and participate in independent sites such as priceline.com. 

*** 
GDS provider Galileo International announced the upcoming launch of two Internet sites with special appeal to travel consumers, agencies and suppliers. One will offer travel suppliers commission-free sales in exchange for supporting the site and offering their best Web-based products and pricing. The other will be positioned as a "super travel agency" site, promoted by Galileo on behalf of its agency customers, and offering consumers online access to a comprehensive set of agency-provided services. GDS provider Galileo also endorsed the Pegasus Commission Processing service through its Global Partner Solutions program, which serves approximately 40,000 travel agency customers worldwide 

*** 
Lexington Services, a Travel Services International subsidiary and the largest provider of global hotel reservations in the nation, unveiled its Property Database Form (PDF) OnLine and other enhanced Internet services. PDF OnLine allows hotels to enter their own detailed property information into the LexLink OnLine system via the Internet; LexLink also allows them to manage inventory, download reservations and access real-time information on revenue, productivity and guest arrivals. 
 

Sales & Catering, Meeting Planning 

AllMeetings.com reported that traffic at its meeting planning web site is experiencing over 100% monthly growth since it added new tools to assist with meeting plans, budgets and locations.  The tools include two new search functions, an Online RFP process, a Budget Estimator and Planning Checklists. 

*** 
Newmarket International announced the general release of its 7.2 line of hospitality sales automation products (Breeze, Delphi, Delphi Multi-Property Edition, and Global SFA), in response its customers growing demands for scalable web-enabled applications.  All 7.2 products use Microsoft's SQL Server 7.0 database. 

Point of Sale 

Station Casinos, Inc. has ordered InfoGenesis' Revelation POS for an innovative "complexed" installation for its four Las Vegas hotel-casino properties.  The four separate properties will use more than 190 POS terminals linked via a high-bandwidth wide area network (WAN) to a server cluster located at one property.  The InfoGenesis POS check detail data warehouse will also be linked to Station's player-tracking application to enhance guest recognition and service. 

Guest Services 

Ritz-Carlton extended its contract with LodgeNet Entertainment Corp under a new agreement that adds Internet-based services to all the 6,000 guest rooms LodgeNet serves. LodgeNet will include new entertainment and information services �powered by the Net,� allowing guests to access the chain�s Web-based hotel directory, reservations service and e-commerce sites in addition to having high-speed, general Internet access via the television�s remote control or wireless keyboard. 

CAIS Internet unveiled its hospitality industry customized Content Portal, and announced its plans to deliver the Portal to all users of its high speed guestroom Internet access service. The CAIS portal site draws on more than 110 Internet content providers, and will offer multi-media online business, financial, shopping, concierge and other services; they will also be customizable by hotel managers and chain owners. 

Denver-based STS Communications also launched its Hotel Net guest service portal, providing guest services online with a wide-array of content, eCommerce applications, communication and collaborative tools. With the portal customizable by each hotel manager or chain, STS plans to be vendor-independent, partnering with providers of existing in-room systems. 

STS Communications was also chosen as a select technology provider to Sage Hospitality Resources for its 56 hotel properties, which include Hiltons, Marriotts, and independent locations. STS will partner with other companies to provide the Internet service infrastructure at each property, over which it will deliver content, commerce, communications, and collaborative tools to the hotel guests and staff. 

GuesTech, LLC announced an agreement to install its SuiteLink product at the 150-room Annapolis Marriott Waterfront in Annapolis, Maryland, and the 103-room Key West Inn and Suites in Huntsville, Alabama. SuiteLink includes a flat-panel-display PC in each room, and provides hotel guests with access to the Microsoft Office Standard Suite application and free in-room high-speed Internet access. Use of the Microsoft applications is subject to a nominal daily charge. 

High-speed Internet provider Darwin Networks announced a $30 million dollar supply agreement with its equipment supplier Elastic Networks, a spin-off of Nortel Networks. Darwin�s recent hotel contracts include over 1400 hotels. 

Hyatt International introduced Technology Concierge services at its 80 hotels and resorts worldwide. The new service is available through the hotel�s Front Desk or Business Centre to assist guests in setting up mobile communications equipment, to explain the use of guestroom technology, hook-up laptops, provide support in accessing e-mail or the Internet, and obtain converters and adapters. For trickier tasks, the hotel�s IS department will be available for troubleshooting. (www.hyatt.com) 

Purchasing 

Hospitality Worldwide Services launched its web-based catalog offering select hospitality merchandise. The Hospitality Catalog is positioned as the first stage in a seamless web-based solution for all hospitality purchasing; other functions to be added include procurement management, project management, logistics/warehousing and reorder services. HWS� existing clients include Hyatt, Marriott International, Hilton, Ritz Carlton, Four Seasons, Wyndham, and Sun International. 

Eatec Corp has joined Instill�s new strategic alliance program as a charter vendor, and will integrate its automated management tools for the hospitality industry with Purchase Web 5.0, Instill�s e-commerce procurement software. 

Richfield Hospitality Services has selected business-to-business e-commerce service provider PurchasePro.com, Inc. to create a private e-marketplace for its 46 properties. 

PurchasePro.com also added Internet travel planner Travelscape.com�s services to its online offerings. Each company will post direct links to the other�s home page on its Web Site, and will develop co-branded promotions to generate traffic between the sites. 

Communications 

SDD expanded its JAZZ hospitality call accounting product line to support operators of multi-tenant properties, including condominiums, time shares, and extended stays. The Windows NT-based JAZZ Residence Telemanager captures telephone, service, and recurring equipment charges for in-house tenants, and costs, surcharges, and bills telecommunications activity back to tenant accounts using customizable billing routines. It also provides network-wide access, control, and analysis of telephone and network activity. 

*** 
Xiox Corp. released its Lodging Software for Windows (LS Win) hospitality call accounting package. Features include multi-tiered pricing for Internet usage billing, automatic downloadable rate table updates, multiple tax levels and extensive reporting capabilities for tracking usage. LS Win also includes a Traffic Engineering package that allows hotels to optimize their voice networks. 

Database Marketing  

Manhattan East Suite Hotels Make MAGIC 

Manhattan East Suite Hotels (MESH) announced the full deployment of an innovative database marketing application across their ten hotels in New York City. The Marketing and Guest Information Center, or MAGIC is the heart of the application, which integrates database marketing tools from Group 1 Software with the companies CLS Central Reservations and Property Management Systems. All users on the MESH Metropolitan Area Network utilize the system to capture, retain and reutilize guest preference data on the service delivery level, while 
populating core database functions at the marketing level with clean and reliable data. The degree of system integration designed by MESH, their vendors and consultants ensures data consistency and data integrity at every level of the operation. The objective is to make detailed information about valued guests available to service personnel, while tracking and segmenting populations of guests effectively and profitably. 

In-Room Services 

Ascent Entertainment Group, majority owner of in-room entertainment provider On Command, announced that their preliminary agreement to sell their sports properties for in Denver (Nuggets, Avalanche and facility, $461 million) to local investor Donald Sturm had expired.  Negotiations had been marked by repeated and increasing demands for concessions by Sturm from Ascent and the City of Denver.  Ascent executives believe that the failure of the sports properties agreement may cause the recently-announced sale of On Command for $513.6 million to Liberty Media to also collapse.  Shares of both Ascent (NASDAQ: GOAL) and OnCommad (ONCO) dropped significantly on the news, with On Command's share price recovering somewhat.

New York, New York!  International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show November 5 - 9.  This show rocks!  Jacob Javits Center was again wall-to-wall, with more technology vendors than I ever remember seeing.  Traffic at the show was excellent this year, with the heaviest number of qualified buyers showing up for the seven-hour Monday session.  As in past years UPDATE hosted the Technology Pavilion on the main floor where 16 vendors set up shop to show their products and services.  The E-morph of hospitality is definitely a real deal.  Six Internet - commerce companies showed their technology in the Pavilion, with two more vendors demonstrating Web-based energy management and high-speed access. 

One of the hottest new trends at the show was on-line procurement, with half a dozen vendors clicking their screens and signing up purveyors on the show floor � one e-company even gave away a car to get people in the booth.   GoCo-op hosted an independent analysis of e-procurement by The Aberdeen Group, Inc. that forecasted a huge increase in on-line buying showing that it allows vast numbers of buyers and vendors to meet without anyone leaving their office, so everyone profits.  The Editor�s best-new-technology prize, awarded by the predominantly foodservice publications, went to FOODGalaxy.com for its e-purchasing innovations�Congratulations FOODGalaxy!   Additionally, the explosion in high-speed Internet providers continued with 10+ companies coming to NY to differentiate themselves. 

Several tech companies used IH/M&R to roll out new products.  Eltrax introduced its Net-based �inndemand� application service provider (ASP) property management system; TeleMatrix unveiled its new Caller ID and Cordless phones for hospitality; and Darwin announced its $30M relationship with NorTel�s Elastic Networks for deploying their high-speed Internet access to chain buyers.  Even Cendant hosted a breakfast to discuss its announcement to offer personalized web sites by Netopia to all of its thousands of properties. 

Anyone who still thinks of the New York show as a northeast regional event needs to reevaluate.  With 1999 IH/M&R has clearly emerged as a major national show with a substantial high-technology presence.  See you in 2000.

Okay, a week in NYC and you get a million NYC cab stories. Here was my favorite!