Hotel Online Special Report 
Knights Franchise Systems Technology Initiatives Focus on Web Site and Chain-wide High Speed Internet Access PARSIPPANY, NJ, August 8, 2000 – Knights Franchise Systems, Inc. today unveiled the redesign of its Website, www.knightsinn.com. Additionally, the brand announced an initiative making High-Speed Internet (HSI) a chain-wide standard.
“The development and implementation of high-tech innovation has revolutionized the travel and lodging industries,” said Marilyn McHugh, Vice President of Marketing for the chain. “Knights is proud to be on the leading edge of this technology, providing a valuable service to our guests and our franchisees.”
Packed with information about the chain’s programs, promotions and other special offers, the user-friendly home page allows consumers to make guaranteed reservations 24 hours a day, seven days a week at any of the brand’s more than 230 hotels. The site also provides details about all Knights Inn properties and the services and amenities offered at each. “Not only did we give our site a fresh new look and feel, but we simplified our reservation process so that it only requires one click to get to our reservation screen,” said McHugh.
Knights’ website continues to be trucker-friendly by also offering an online resource center filled with over 500 links to driver-related sites. The site includes a link index to trucking companies, truckers associations, truck stops, weather and road conditions, unions, vendors and suppliers, charitable organizations, insurance companies and much more. In a move aimed at further enhancing technological offerings, Knights Franchise Systems, Inc. has also made High-Speed Internet (HSI) a chain-wide standard. All guest rooms and meeting rooms are required to be wired for high-speed Internet access, making Knights one of the first budget hotel brands to implement a chain-wide HSI access program. With HSI in every guestroom, travelers will be able to access the Internet up to 50 times faster than conventional modems.
“Guests can use the phone and browse the Internet at the same time,” added McHugh. “This is a value-added amenity that our guests have been asking for.” “The e-commerce explosion and evolving marketplace has created a new type of customer whose demands and service requirements are dramatically increasing,” said Knights Inn President and Chief Executive Officer Bruce V. Bloom. “Given the growing number of techno-savvy consumers using the Internet, we felt that offering high speed Internet access to today’s guests was an aggressive and forward-thinking move for the chain.”
Knights Franchise Systems, Inc., a subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (NYSE: CD), is a budget lodging chain of more than 230 franchised properties in the United States and Canada.
Contact: Evy Apostolatos (973) 496-8420 [email protected] www.knightsinn.com Also See Bruce V. Bloom Named President and CEO at Knights Franchise Systems / Sept 1999 Cendant Corporation Signs Agreement with CAIS Internet and VirtuaLINC for High Speed Internet Access System to more than 700,000 Rooms / Oct 1999