4th Cornell/EHL Reception at IHIF/ITB

Berlin (February 3, 2012). The 4th Annual Cornell/Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) Reception at IHIF/ITB will be held Tuesday/March 6, 2012 from 8-10 p.m. at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Berlin, Germany.

More power for fewer providers?

Berlin (February 17, 2012). The speed of acquisitions in the world of IT significantly increased last year. At the same time, search engines and social media like Google and Facebook keep advancing, implementing more and more new models. And finally, a breathtakingly increasing number of people are using their mobile device for making reservations and communication as well. Due to high costs, hoteliers promote their own website. But who will win this race? Just a few? Sales experts debate on the current developments in the field of hotel distribution at the 7th ITB Hospitality Day on Thursday, March 8, 2012 between 2 and 3 pm at ITB Berlin, hall 7.1b/London. HRS, Expedia, Sabre, and Justbook Mobile will meet. The question to them: Fewer providers with more power? What new dependencies have the latest market shifts produced?

Editorial February 17, 2012 – Of Leaders and Losers

Dear Insiders,
At the eMarketing Day by HSMA on Monday it is bizarre to hear how Google and Facebook would like to bring mankind into their digital clutches while on the other side, hoteliers are still distributing guest questionnaires with "Smiles" by hand. And how hoteliers get excited about the 2% commission rise with HRS, while Google and Facebook will presumably pull the fur over their ears with the cost per click model.

The discussion in the background does not question HRS, but the entire distribution model of the hotel industry: Intermediaries have long been paid for bookings carried out, but the search and social media giants are based on the click volume – without booking assurance.
HRS still has no reason laugh. The German Federal Anti-trust Commission has gotten into it with a warning on last Friday. It touches on the main pillar of the HRS commercial model: The stringent price parity. We have spoken with the German Federal Anti-trust Commission and the HRS Managing Directors, Robert Ragge and his colleague, Michael Simon, were also given another opportunity to present their perspective. We then gave rise to comments on the HRS answers by an experienced distribution expert: by Bruno Wolf.
Also in Austria, one is moved to pity over the power of HRS and their respective Austrian affiliate, Tiscover. Indeed, the hoteliers and destination experts must also take the blame themselves: "From Leader to Loser".
The current discussion was not yet foreseeable when we placed the subject of distribution on the agenda of the ITB hotel conference. It has now become even more fascinating. In the panel, "Distribution: More Power for Fewer Suppliers?, " HRS, Sabre, Expedia and Justbook mobile will take part in the ITB Hospitality Day. More on our front page or under "Network".
Today and in time for the ITB, we would also like to introduce to you in more detail the co-exhibitors of the first "hospitality X-PERTS Lounge" in Hall 9, Stand 109. You will also find their profiles and main focuses on our front page or under "Network". Meet the top companies from IT, HR and Consulting!
Because the latest distribution discussions have priority unfortunately, the promised report on the investment conference in Istanbul must wait one more week.
Moreover, this week brought a lot of research following the dismissal of the Steigenberger CEO, as reported in our "Breaking News" on Wednesday. Today, you will read an extensive evaluation on Steigenberger's situation today.