News | November 29, 2007

Portfolio Hotels And Resorts Names SuiteLinq As Preferred In-Room Digital Solutions Provider

Exton, PA - Portfolio Hotels and Resorts, a hospitality business innovator that specializes in managing unique, boutique-style destination resorts and urban hotels in markets worldwide, has designated SuiteLinq Inc.'s integrated Video-On-Demand and interactive desktop solution as its corporate brand standard for in-room digital services. SuiteLinq is a provider of broadband and on-demand solutions for hospitality and extended-stay environments, providing exceptional digital experiences for guests and new revenue opportunities for property owners.

SuiteLinq delivers a bundled set of services and hardware that includes desktop computers, HDTV's, broadband Internet, free and pay TV channels, and a custom-designed interactive portal offering a variety of content tailored to the needs of both modern hotel guests and the property brand. This in-room digital solution is capable of utilizing guest data residing within the organization to provide a highly personalized experience that helps drive loyalty and intent to return.

Portfolio's naming of SuiteLinq as its preferred in-room digital solution comes after SuiteLinq successfully deployed its SuiteVOD and SuiteCast services at The Orchard Garden Hotel in San Francisco, a Portfolio property.

According to Michael Payne, Portfolio's Vice President of Operations, "Portfolio Hotels and Resorts strives to be an innovative, efficient, and nimble property management group, able to quickly translate our market insight into action. What this means is that we prioritize customer experience creation as a core element of the brand. At all of our properties, we focus on providing an in-room environment that goes beyond guest expectations and leaves a memorable imprint on their minds. SuiteLinq shares this mission and has a proven solution that our guests at The Orchard Garden love. So the relationship is a good fit and one that we look forward to expanding."

In the highly competitive hospitality market, differentiation is critical. The more a property can make a positive impression on the guest, the stronger their loyalty to the brand tends to become. According to SuiteLinq, meeting this challenge means keeping pace with customer demands.

"Today's hospitality customers are hard to truly impress," states SuiteLinq's CEO Joseph Mustilli. "Services like in-room movies and internet access that they used to consider amenities ten years ago are now considered an expectation and thus don't have the ability to leave a positive impression. This is especially true in high-end properties where guests want to feel at home during their stay. Home to them is often a very comfort-rich environment with HDTV's, digital cable, broadband Internet and the like. We deliver the means to make the in-room guest experience better than home. For each property, SuiteLinq designs a highly interactive guest interface that is brand-customized. It is easy to navigate for the guest, but also feature-rich and expandable. The idea is to provide the guest with the digital hardware they now expect, such as HDTV's and in-room computers, and then use these devices to engage them in a variety of new ways that generate tangible return for the property."

According to Mustilli, the potential of these digital services goes way beyond their typical use today. He states, "In many properties, web-TV is available but almost without value. Guests find it cumbersome to utilize and properties generate little revenue from it." SuiteLinq's offering is designed to be both user-friendly as well as expandable in terms of revenue creation. "For example, a guest using our SuiteLinq desktop service isn't just using it to surf the Internet. They can access interactive hotel services, make on-site restaurant reservations, dialogue with the concierge, manage and share digital photos, view on-demand videos, and more. Likewise, the HDTV can deliver similar features and integrated services. The idea is to provide accessible digital platforms that get the guest more deeply engaged with the brand, both emotionally and financially, during their stay. As a thought-leader in the industry, Portfolio Hotels and Resorts understands how important such features are when it comes to maintaining customer loyalty and maximizing guest revenue potential. We are pleased and honored that they have chosen SuiteLinq as their first designated brand standard."

About SuiteLinq

SuiteLinq, Inc. serves the needs of the hospitality and extended stay industries by providing integrated, on-demand entertainment and business productivity solutions that deliver The Ultimate In-Room Experience for guests and new revenue streams for property owners. SuiteLinq's core service offering is eRoomsuite, comprised of turn-key components that can be installed individually or as a package:

SuiteLinq – A customized portal running on an in-room computer with high-speed Internet offering a variety of interactive guest services, free content, and pay-per-access features and entertainment

SuiteCast – Free-to-guest broadcast and cable TV channels

SuiteVOD – Hollywood movies, informational programs, and a variety of pay-per-view Video-On-Demand content delivered in standard and high-definition formats

Property owners choose from several financial models offering no up-front installation fees, significant guest-revenue sharing plans, full staff training, and 24/7 technical support. Video delivery options include a choice of large screen flat panel LCD's or Plasma TV's for a superb high-definition viewing experience. eRoomsuite is delivered via partnerships with world-class technology and support companies that include Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard. Corporate headquarters are located in Exton, PA, with sales offices in Las Vegas, NV, and Baltimore, MD. For more information, visit www.suitelinq.com or email wballa@suitelinq.com

SOURCE: Portfolio Hotels and Resorts