Innovation

🔔 Club Quarters, a hotel brand, now allows guests to use digital wallet-enabled mobile room keys across all its properties in the US and UK. This is a first for a hotel chain to implement such technology at all locations. The system includes Vostio Access Management by Vingcard, offering enhanced security with data encryption. Digital keys activate upon electronic check-in and work on both Apple and Android devices without unlocking the phone. Additionally, the digital key can access the hotel's fitness center and update automatically for extended stays. Club Quarters CEO John Paul Nichols emphasizes the move towards digital keys for improved convenience and security. Physical key cards remain available.

📌 Jon Pickles elected as new chairman of Travel Technology Initiative, succeeding Tim Wright on January 1. Pickles, with extensive experience in travel technology, aims to expand TTI's initiatives like TTIcodes, TTIplaces, TTIrooms, increase revenue and membership. Actively involved for over 2 years, he'll promote innovative technology at the Spring Conference on March 19 at Holiday Inn London - Regents Park.

🏨 PKFARE, a global travel product aggregator, has partnered with hotel booking API provider ZentrumHub. The collaboration grants travel sellers access to over 650,000 hotel properties via ZentrumHub’s API. The deal aims to expand distribution reach, enhance pricing intelligence, and facilitate AI-driven searches with minimal integration effort. ZentrumHub’s CEO, Abhinav Sinha, and PKFARE’s SVP, Jason Sui, express optimism about the growth potential and technological innovation the partnership promises.

✈️ Accelya, an airline retailing software firm, reported a record day for corporate New Distribution Capability (NDC) bookings on January 7. The company saw a 146% year-over-year increase in corporate NDC volumes for 2024 compared to 2023. Tye Radcliffe, Chief Customer Success Officer, indicates 2025 as pivotal for NDC adoption in corporate travel, highlighting the industry's shift towards modern retailing technologies and customer-centric approaches. Accelya's FLX ONE platform supports this transformation.

💰 emerchantpay, a global payment service provider founded in 2002, partners with Oasis Travel, a near 40-year-old independent travel agency in Northern Ireland. Oasis Travel will use emerchantpay's advanced solutions like Pay by Link, MOTO payments, and smartPOS PAX A920 terminals to enhance customer payment experiences across their high street branches and multiple channels, aiming for efficient, secure transactions and operational streamlining.

📢 HiJiffy, a conversational AI hospitality firm, launched its Campaigns Manager tool to enhance guest communication automation by integrating with a hotel’s Property Management System (PMS). The AI-driven platform can send messages via WhatsApp or SMS and includes SMS fallback for areas with poor internet. Tiago Araújo, CEO of HiJiffy, emphasizes its utility for operational efficiency and personalized guest engagement. It offers targeting, dynamic messaging, and an analytics dashboard, boasting a 99% message delivery and 84% open rate during tests. The tool is free for HiJiffy clients with Premium and Enterprise plans.

🏩 Hospitality industry faced an all-time high exit rate last year with over 3 million people quitting. Millennials and Gen Z, being the world's largest demographic entering the workplace, are redefining hiring with their digital savvy and value-driven job expectations. Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and AI are utilized to optimize recruitment, reduce response times, and automate workflows. 43% of hotels report housekeeping as an ongoing staffing challenge. The article emphasizes the importance of company culture and personalized recruitment strategies to attract and retain top talent.

🏨 G6 Hospitality, operator of Motel 6 and Studio 6, partners with HotelKey to enhance technology across its properties in the U.S. and Canada. Aiming to add over 150 hotels in 2025, G6 Hospitality will use HotelKey as its core property management system (PMS) to optimize operations and guest experiences. Currently, G6 has over 1,500 properties in North America. The announcement was made at an event in Nagpur, Maharashtra, India, featuring key figures such as Union Minister Shri Nitin Gadkari and OYO CEO Ritesh Agarwal.