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Sol Meliá becomes the first hotel group to launch Android Mobile App using latest HTML5 technology

14-10-10

 
Sol Meliá becomes the first hotel group to launch Android Mobile App using latest HTML5 technology image
 

Spain’s Leading Hotel Group partners with MTT to release Android App

Sol Meliá, Spain’s leading hotel group and the world's leading holiday hotel chain, has launched a new downloadable mobile app for Android mobile device users. The app, developed by Dublin-based specialist, Mobile Travel Technologies Ltd.(MTT), incorporates the latest HTML5 technology.

Android has experienced incredible growth this year. According to Comscore the number of android devices in Europe has jumped 25 fold since April 2009, and Gartner predicts that by the end of 2010 Android will have a larger market share than iPhone.

In January 2010, MTT launched Sol Meliá’s mobile web site, including booking, which has attracted more than one million hits since its launch, with the majority of users searching for and booking city hotels at the last-minute.

The new Android app makes use of the geo-location capabilities of the mobile device, to assist last-minute travellers locate the nearest hotel. With a few easy clicks a customer can locate and book a stay at the hotel nearest to them.

The launch of the downloadable Android app consolidates Sol Meliá’s position as a leader in both customer service and in offering user-friendly, service-led technology solutions for its guests.

The services, available in both English and Spanish, include:

  • Location of the nearest hotel to user’s current location
  • Mobile booking
  • View and manage bookings already made
  • Storage of customer details and contact information from previous bookings
  • Management of mas rewards loyalty program account
  • Exclusive mobile-only promotions

MTT has also released two light launcher apps for BlackBerry and iPhone at the same time, giving Sol Meliá a presence in all of the leading mobile app stores.

 “We wanted to open up access to bookings on mobile phones to our customers regardless of the phone they may have,” said David Wright, Vice President of Global Distribution & E-commerce for Sol Meliá.

 “At Sol Meliá we focus on delivering personalized service and a unique and unforgettable experience, and we wanted our mobile channel to reflect that commitment. Our partnership with MTT has allowed us to deliver high-quality mobile apps quickly.”

The apps and mobile services implemented for Sol Meliá are powered by MTT’s intelligent mobile hotel platform, m2bed. In addition to providing server-side support for the apps, m2bed also allows customers to access the Sol Meliá mobile site on virtually all mobile devices.

MTT’s Android services are developed in HTML5.  HTML5 applications can also be quickly and easily configured by MTT to work optimally on iPhone, high-end Nokia devices, and increasing numbers of other devices.

Gerry Samuels, Founder and Executive Director, MTT, comments: “Mobile technology is an increasingly important channel for hotel groups all over the world, and companies making the investment in mobile are seeing dramatic returns. We continually invest in our m2bed platform to ensure that it is always modern and configurable and able to deliver new and innovative features and functionality. HTML5 is a key technology for mobile travel, and part of our core expertise. We’re delighted to work with a forward looking hotel group like Sol Meliá to deliver up to the minute mobile services.”

To download the Sol Meliá Android APP visit:
http://market.android.com/details?id=com.mttnow.solmelia

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easyJet and MTT - The number one travel iPhone app in the UK

12-Dec-11 11:50

 

On Thursday December 8th, easyJet, the UK’s largest airline released iPhone and Android apps, developed by Mobile Travel Technologies Ltd., using our M2B Next Gen mobile travel platform.

The app is the fastest airline booking app available, enabling passengers to book a flight on more than 580 routes in less than 30 seconds! (easyJet Press Release)

Within 24 hours the easyJet iPhone app was the number 1 travel app in the UK!<

Read more...

Can mobile change the way travellers feel about ancillary products?

15-Jun-11 17:39

 
Can mobile change the way travellers feel about ancillary products? image
 

by Gerry Samuels,  Founder and Executive Director

Ancillary sales are one of the most debated issues in the travel industry today. Forrester (with Amadeus) project that by 2015 ancillaries will account for up to 18% of travel suppliers’ revenue.

In their January 2011 study, Cross-Sell Your Way to Profit, they reveal that while traditional third-party services such as insurance, car rental and hotel room sales are expected to remain popular, travel providers see great potential in a range of ‘extreme’, as yet unexploited, products and services.

By 2020, more than half of travel providers expect to offer virtual reality services that can help passengers experience airports, hotels and cruise ships before arrival, digital concierges to improve the in-hotel or airport experience and in-journey spa treatments.

It’s clear that travel suppliers need and want to grow and diversify ancillary revenue. What consumers want is not so clear, and opinions are divided.

Depending on who you ask, consumers want the lowest possible fare with everything unbundled, or they want simple logical bundles and reasonable fares, or they want more value-added options and third party services or they are sick to death of being nickel and dimed to death, and want the whole mess to just go away.

While travel suppliers work to find the right balance for their brand and their customers long term, mobile offers an immediate opportunity to turn the problem on its head.

Front-loading optional ancillary services in your booking process can be effective for some services, but the mobile phone in every travellers pocket means that suppliers can interact with customers at every step of the journey (including planning and pre-trip preparation), and can choose to offer the right ancillary services at the time when the customer is most likely to need or want to buy.

Done well, ancillary sales via mobile will be seen by customers as valuable service, not sales.

Let’s look at some examples:

  • At time of booking offers on ground transportation and airport parking are logical options.
  • At mobile check-in, especially on the return leg of a trip, an offer to skip the queue at security and use the VIP lane could be well received. I know exactly what to expect from the security queue at my home airport, but I might well pay to sail to the front of the queue at O’Hare. This might also be a good time to remind me that I didn’t opt for an in-flight meal.
  • Your flight is delayed for three hours – how about a day-pass to the lounge for a glass of wine with free wi-fi?
  • Just before boarding an airline could push a mobile only offer for extra leg-room or seat upgrade. The extra fee may not have seemed attractive at time of booking, but after an hour in the airport a little extra space seems like a dream come true.
  • A guest booked an executive room and checked-in after midnight; a quick tap on their mobile could order room service coffee for the morning.
  • Guests who book family rooms may appreciate direct mobile booking for local amusement parks or family activities.  Maybe even a reminder about the in-resort babysitting service and available (grown-up) dinner reservations.
  • It’s the night before check-out. The kids are hyped up on sugar and you can’t find little Sally’s left shoe. Would express mobile check-out and a car to the airport tomorrow morning help?

There are a thousand possibilities.

A well developed mobile channel, integrated with your business systems, allows you to offer your customer what they want, when they want it and when they are willing to pay for it.

And that’s something that both travel suppliers and consumers want

(originally published at Tnooz.com)

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