Editorial

Dear Insiders, A colourful edition awaits today: Developer Georg Schlegel explains the challenges facing the up and coming midscale segment and its differences to the budget segment. And hotel consultants and hoteliers criticise the sluggish and selective behaviour of the banks - they have quite a different story to the one from the bankers last week. Experts also warn of a "black screen" for 2012 when digital television is introduced and they provide tips. Many hoteliers couldn't believe their eyes as Google, in a radical move, removed hotel ratings from the web last Friday: Interesting news from Switzerland: Seiler Hotels are selling their real estate, and the City of Lucerne will establish a "hotel zone" in order to prevent hotels from dying out. We also have new personalia and to round it all off, the story of the baptism of the "Adlon Rose" in the Kempinski Hotel Adlon in Berlin. And last but not least, On Tuesday, October 4, the Hospitality Industry Dialogue will take place and will focus on current themes affecting the industry with high-calibre panelists. The programme is largely already fixed. An overview is provided under "Mice" or under our "Networks" button on our home page and can be accessed by all users. - The full editorial…

Dear Insiders, How do experts and parties concerned evaluate the current funding situation for the hotel industry? Today, banks speak, next week the hotel consultants und hoteliers.With his financing model for the Adlon fund, the initiator of the fund, August Jagdfeld, is up against the wall – therefore, he is starting a PR tour through Germany. Will it help?Accor regards its cooperation with the German Sustainable Building Council as "Tour d'Horizon". Its certificate values the property but Accor wants to obtain it as operator. Why? An interesting interview.An unbelievably high number of hotels let conference requests of over 30,000 Euro slip through their fingers, either by not responding or not checking up on inquiries. A test hands out only bad marks around the globe.The American consultancy HFD created a programme concerning spa performance. Kempinski continues to restructure its personnel; Orascom-founder Samih Sawiris hands over his position as CEO …Investors and hoteliers are already getting ready for EXPO REAL in Munich, from October 4 - 6. And again, there will be a novelty for the hotel industry: the premier of "World of Hospitality". At the first joint stand for hospitality businesses, 7 top companies of the industry will be awaiting you! Details for all users on our front page or under "Network".Last but not least: the programme of the "Hospitality Industry Dialogue", the hotel conference at EXPO REAL, which I am honoured to organize for the fourth time. Details for all under "Network". - The full editorial …

Dear Insiders, What would you think if address data from strangers suddenly appeared on your computer screen? We experienced such a data leak… The scale of the problem was immediately apparent as SynXis was involved here - serving 12,000 hotel clients. The full story today - together with tips as to how hotel groups can protect themselves from internet attacks. The background to DGNB certification also needs some explaining. A first article on this point will today illustrate why this label only applies to the hotel property. In Germany, Van der Valk hotels manage as yet just one hotel. In the Netherlands, they are the biggest hotel group. And no wonder: Behind the hotel group is a family which operates internally like a franchise company. And in time for the holiday season, today's edition will also include a small article from our travel chest: I recently noticed small creative elements in the One&Only The Palm Dubai and in the Pullman Dubai. From the cabana with air conditioning to the wine bar. - The full editorial…

Dear Insiders, Where is the industry heading? Robert Salzl, former Chairman of the Board of the Schoerghuber Company Group, says: "The hotelier can no longer afford a hotel!"In contrast to this is the extravagance and self-confidence: In Paris, The Mandarin Oriental has now opened. Here, the Asian brand oozes with French style. I ask myself though: Why should I want to stay in an Asian hotel in Paris?Authenticity will pay in future. "The user no longer believes us", IT specialist Bruno Wolf says at the premier of the talk "Freitagshappen" arranged by hospitalityInside and the Hotel Nassauer Hof in Wiesbaden. Where are Social Media and Mobile Commerce taking us, we asked, and found: Hoteliers find themselves in a squeeze.Just how strong the influence of Social Media and Mobile Commerce already is and will become is illustrated by the findings of several studies which one online research company has made available to hospitalityInside readers.Brand new market facts and figures are also published in the new report "Budget Hotels in Germany 2011" by PKF hotelexperts Munich. The 75-page document shows a changed market after the financial crisis. More on this on our start page!Kempinski is restructuring its sales department, Travel Charme grows in Austria through acquisitions, and real estate transactions are again on the up. - The full editorial…

Dear Insiders, Experiencing the first soccer game of the German team - of the "best women" - together with 73,000 soccer fans last Sunday was a delight. Marriott's PR idea of inviting "female opinion leaders" into the VIP area of Berlin's Olympia Stadium was also a win. At the same time, Susanne Stauss and I asked about the ramifications of the event at four of the nine World Cup cities – the result: a super image push for the destinations and for individual hotels, nice additional business for all, though no boom. Not at all fun, on the other hand, is the on-going sometimes very public spat between August Jagdfeld from Fundus and the Shareholder Protection Association. The latter now has an opportunity to remove Jagdfeld from management. Design Hotels, on the other hand, see customers as partners and are working intensively on new "creative" strategies for them - and on direct distribution. Two other consortia, Romantik Hotels and Ringhotels, today explain their web and social media strategies. One of them is focussing on training the medium-sized private hoteliers, the other is managing their activities centrally. Marketing of both consortia takes a two-prong approach: online has still not overtaken paper. In addition, further interesting news from the business travel and tour operators' world - and more… - The full editorial.

Dear Insiders, Elisabeth Guertler from Hotel Sacher has bought a second Grand Hotel in Vienna: The Bristol, in the immediate vicinity. Alongside the Bristol, the Imperial has also found a new owner, as has Goldener Hirsch in Salzburg. The sale of these "crown jewels" has an interesting background.The exclusive Rosewood Hotels from Dallas have also been sold - to Chinese owners. And in 2009, the Schweizerhof in Bern was sold to investors from Qatar. Today, after undergoing renovation work to the tune of 45 million CHF, the Swiss hotel legend celebrates its official reopening.Investment issues underlie such news; but will these hotels ever find their way back to their old roles as magnets for the city? Design Hotels pondered the 'neighbourhood'. How does a hotel today establish itself in its direct surroundings?The new "neighbourhood" trend.Junior Spas: A tour through various hotels shows that the trend has been implemented with much creativity. From action to acne treatments, there's everything on offer, expensive or complimentary. Wellness is an experience factor for the family and an event for the youngsters.Our news today pick up thoughts about the assumed sale of Al Waleed's minority stake in Moevenpick Hotels & Resorts, at the new developments at Berlin's Central Station and at Ritz-Carlton's long new expansion list. - The full editorial…

Dear Insiders, In Leipzig, the Steigenberger Grand Hotel flagship officially opened on Tuesday evening. All prestige hotels of the group should look like this in future. CEO, Arco Buijs, wants to earn the money with 3 and 4-star properties.In Freiburg, the members of the IHA met. The online reservations are out of control!, complained the hoteliers self-critically there. In the matter of sustainability, successful companies encouraged their colleagues.As a pure experiment, one could see the premiere of the new Alpine-covering trade show, "theAlps", in Innsbruck. The organisers experienced surprises with their new format, but the basic feedback remained positive.Meanwhile, in Morocco, the future has many question marks; however, skilful investment strategies and the planned entry into the GCC Alliance attuned the tourism-makers positively.A high resonance was found after the workshop, "Investment in Spas", at the end of May with 17 participants, Rizzato Spa Consulting and hospitalityInside will hold the workshop once again: The next appointment is on Thursday, the 3rd of November, 2011. Please register or reserve immediately! Details on our starting page. - The full editorial...

Dear Insiders, what is a lease generally still worth? After the bustle around the Dorint/InterConti in Berlin and Duesseldorf Jones Lang LaSalle tries to answer this question today. Motel One will remain loyal to the lease contract as Philipp Westermann explains - even with the expansion now beginning beyond the German-speaking realm. The strategy of the next time. The online intermediaries seem to have based their strategy on the hope, among other things, that the hotel industry, itself, will never be one. This and more became clear with a discussion about rate parity at the HSMA "Pricing & Distribution Day". Today, we will conclude our insight into the expansion strategies of various hotel groups in the Middle East and Africa with the Arabian Rotana Hotel Group. Excitement: The judgment of a Rhineland-Palatine court a few days ago explained the bed tax as being legal. In addition, a study confirms the trend toward mobile commerce and an investor's survey sees rosy ROI in the sky again … - The full editorial…

Dear Insiders, Helplessness at the HSMA "Pricing & Distribution Day" this week: The speed and the price pressure in distribution weighs heavily on hoteliers. Yet the event did not reveal any sympathy for their burden. Almost all speakers made clear that hoteliers had lost control of rates and content through their own fault. And now there's Google - the spectre with mega announcements...An interview with Worldhotels also sits well with our distribution focus this week. The group is pressing quickly ahead with tailor-made activities for members and with the acquisition of "own" brand hotels. The first hotels bearing the name "Worldhotel" are already appearing.In Arabia and Africa, Wyndham Hotels is also thinking hard about which countries it plans to expand into. The Americans want to bring their top brand and their budget brand into the region.Four weeks ago, the labour market opened in eight EU states. Austria, a country with many EU neighbours, expected a flood of workers, though later determined: Many workers coming from Eastern Europe have already worked in Austria under seasonal contracts.And other news: Sol Meliá will change its name, Kempinski acquires a hotel from Vienna International, in Qatar a Matterhorn is to be built, and JLL has merged with King Sturge...Also, take a look at our "Solutions" section this week: Even Micros-Fidelio can't escape the grip of social media either and develops solutions which follow consumer types: The "point of sale" becomes the "point of service" here. - The full editorial…

Dear Insiders, It has been a lively news week in Germany: Once again, InterConti moves into the InterConti in Berlin and Duesseldorf and the Neue Dorint GmbH allegedly collects millions. One day later in Munich, the Schoerghuber Group and Arabella described their new arrangements with Starwood Hotels. The joint-venture that existed since 1998 exists no more. The type of the communication of both events shows how the relationships of the parties are structured: Dorint rigorously throws out every journalist's inquiry, IHG is ready for communication. All sides publish their own, uncoordinated press releases. Quite different in contrast is the coordinated appearance of Schoerghuber/Arabella and Starwood…The IMEX in Frankfurt showed: MICE business takes up travel once again. That is proved by results of a study and the discussions about new trends with various hotel groups. Today and in the next two issues, we introduce two international hotel groups and an Arabian one who must re-think their expansion in the Middle East and Africa anew. Arabian new-comers are noticing quickly: This part of the world cannot be lumped together just the same as in Europe! - The full editorial…