NATIONAL REPORT— The hotel industry is connecting with wireless technology in a big way with big names embracing the service including such brands as Hyatt Hotels & Resorts and Omni Hotels. Describing the wired-to-wireless movement within Hyatt’s facilities, Assistant VP Robert Bansfield contended this changeover has gone “fairly easily, especially in meeting rooms” across the 61 hotels in its system already serviced by Core Communications. “Our installations had been predominantly wired, in line with the preferences of meeting planners. But these same planners have since indicated a desire to have us make wireless service similarly available, essentially providing the best of both worlds.” Bansfield said that wireless usage, and preference, inexorably increases as crowds ultimately move out of their meeting rooms and into the hotel’s hallways, foyers and reception areas. Commenting on the 25 Omni properties that have already undergone the shift to wireless, with another five sites slated to come online by the end of the first quarter of 2004, Senior VP/Finance and Technology Paul Dietzler pointed out Omni has done both. “Our original contract [with Core]called for wireless solutions in our meeting space. As such, our intent has been to augment wired with wireless capability— as the customer requires.” Now, thanks to what Dietzler described as “totally unobtrusive installation,” Omni’s wired and wireless technologies “perfectly complement each other— especially in [our]newer buildings.” However, when attentions are turned to retrofits at existing properties, Dietzler’s projection is: “Wireless will dominate.” As long as there is already hard-wired capability, any property can go wireless rather easily and economically, according to Core. Today, most individual hotel owners— and hotel brands— are opting for a hybrid menu of services, however, a few years from now wireless technology will become prevalent, the company said, In terms of weighing up the plusses and minuses— as an operational expense, especially in larger properties— wireless solutions can cost as little as 25% to 50% of what it costs to set up wired installations, according to Core.
