The Age of Mobile is upon us. Nine in 10 Americans and 70 percent of people worldwide use mobile phones to text, email, exchange pictures or video, and interact via social networks more often than they talk with each other. 50 billion apps will be downloaded in 2013 and major hotel corporations are creating their own apps which employees utilize to track sales, monitor systems, or check-out customers without being tied to their stations. Equally significant is the rapidly emerging trend that permits consumers to make purchases or transfer funds through their mobile device. In addition, hotel guests are now routinely using their devices to select rooms, unlock hotel doors, make restaurant and golf course reservations, book a massage, order from room service, and track the location of family and friends using GPS technology. Furthermore, hotels are still facing the perennial issue regarding wi-fi ? to charge or not to charge for high-speed internet access. It is no longer a question whether the hospitality industry will fully embrace this revolution but rather when, how and to what extent. The January Hotel Business Review will investigate what some hotels are doing to maximize their opportunities in this mobile space, and will report on the solutions that are proving to be most beneficial for both companies and their guests.

PLUS: Why Hotels Must Use Little Data, mPOS Expected to Replace POS, Why Aren't There More Mobile Hotel Website Bookings?, Mobile PMS, Managing Information for Optimal Results, and much more…