HFTP Connect

How Mobile Technology is Changing the Face of the Hospitality Industry

For anyone wondering if consumers are embracing mobile technology in relation to the hospitality industry, one just needs to look at the following stats:

• 29 percent, and rising, of U.S. mobile subscribers over the age of 18 have booked hotel stays on their smartphones, according to comScore Inc.’s September 2011 Custom Mobile Retail Advisor Survey.
• During the 2011 holiday season, more than 67 percent of consumers planned to make a purchase using a mobile device, according to PayPal.
• And the number of users is growing as mobile payments are expected to grow 40 percent, reaching $670 billion in transactions and 2.5 billion users globally by 2015, according to Juniper Research.

Mobile Technology Today

Hotels are recognizing the increased consumer interest in mobile technology and are delivering to their guests in several ways.

In addition to mobile optimized web sites and click-to-call reservations for easier booking, hotels are now instituting mobile check-in, event or discount promotions, communications with loyalty rewards members, spa appointments and golf tee times via smartphones and tablets.

This is all being done in an effort to reach today’s plugged-in consumer, who are increasingly expecting these types of services. Read More »

Restaurant’s Litigation Challenges Card Network Data Breach Fines
Cisero’s, a small family restaurant in Park City, Utah, has filed a counterclaim against U.S. Bank and Elavon, Inc., Cisero’s former acquiring bank and payment card processor. They are challenging the lawfulness of Elavon’s demand for indemnification from Cisero’s for fines assessed by Visa and MasterCard on U.S. Bank arising out of an alleged data breach at Cisero’s.

The Cisero’s lawsuit has drawn the attention of Wired, Bloomberg, and The Rolling Stone. Read More »

[Part 1] 2011 Year in Review for Hospitality Technology

As we look forward to 2012, we here at HFTP Connect are reflecting on highlights we saw from the previous year to maybe see where we will go in the coming year. This three part series will include the latest happenings in hospitality technology, hospitality finance and with HFTP.

The 3 Biggest Hospitality Finance Topics for 2011

This time we look into what hospitality finance subjects were buzzed about in 2011. And from the looks of things, some of these topics will be big in 2012 as well. So make sure to tell us your thoughts on these topics and what you think it going to be important this year.

Here’s the list. Read More »

As 2011 comes to a close, we here at HFTP Connect will be reflecting on highlights we saw from the year. This year in review will be a three part series that includes the latest happenings in hospitality technology, hospitality finance and with HFTP.

The 3 Biggest Hospitality Technology Topics for 2011

We start this series with a look into what hospitality technology subjects were buzzed about in 2011. Several of the buzzed about subjects in the list below were mentioned in the HITEC 2011 Special Report.

If you haven’t read the HITEC 2011 Special Report yet, make sure you do it as soon as possible. It is a compilation of white papers from various industry sources on the latest technology trends that the HITEC Advisory Council, a group of industry experts, felt were important to the industry this year and in the near future.

So here we go. Make sure to tell us your thoughts on these topics. Read More »

How a Sermon Had Me Reflecting on HFTP’s Ability to Pull Me Out of a Rut

I went to church yesterday and the sermon topic was “The Cloud.” It started making me think about HFTP and all I have learned being a member and participating in this association. For example:

• Every time I learn something new about PCI compliance, I am further daunted by how much more is out there to learn.

• I attended a fantastic webinar the other day on Millennials and how they learn. Really insightful. It made me think about some non-millennials who might need to tackle some new learning skills…

The sermon went on to talk about barriers and two points really hit me. Read More »

Modern hotel guests often expect the same comforts as home when they travel. And while the world continues to converge and hospitality technology becomes more accessible, there are still regions of the world that face technology challenges different than others.
Europe is one hot spot in the industry that has a unique set of issues that aren’t found in other parts of the world.

European Hoteliers Face Unique IT Challenges

In Europe, hospitality professionals must deal with various taxation rules, currency, vendors, information security, cultures and more as they cross borders to do business in each country.

Another major difference is the wide variety of hoteliers in Europe. While there are large hotel chains doing business in Europe, there are also many independent and small businesses running hotels throughout Europe. This poses a challenge in raising the awareness of technology available to these hoteliers.

Smaller hoteliers also have to worry about financing technology for their businesses to keep up with the larger chains. With guests bringing their own technology into their guest space hotels now more than ever before are expected to provide seamless integration with the home technologies which can put a heavy burden on IT budgets. Read More »

There are far too many vendors using the term tokenization loosely to describe solutions that, in fact, are not true tokenization. As if it’s not already hard enough to find the right solution (and even more difficult to pitch that solution to the decision makers), these “Tokenization-In-Name-Only” (TINO) providers make the situation even more convoluted by cluttering the marketplace with half truths and impossible promises.

At Shift4 Corporation, we know tokenization. We introduced tokenization to the industry in 2005, and since then have processed more than three billion tokenized transactions. To help you ensure that you are receiving the best possible information before you chose a tokenization provider, we’re suggesting some questions you need to be asking about tokenization:

• How does tokenization reduce my PCI DSS requirements?
• How do I handle chargebacks if I don’t have access to the card data?
• How does tokenization work in a multi-property environment?
• Are tokens portable?
• Are tokens truly random or is this really just a new name for encryption? Read More »

PCI Compliance Boot Camp Comes to HITEC 2011

In the U.S. military, the concept of “boot camp” brings to mind very physical and vigorous training that transforms the average citizen into a fully developed soldier who is combat ready. For the hospitality sector, there is a similar war happening: We have aggressive hackers trying to steal credit card data and we need to be fully trained in how to best serve and protect our guests.

Developing transaction security strategies and maintaining PCI compliance can be very daunting. It is time for the hospitality sector to experience a “boot camp” that will make any hotelier battle-ready. Fortunately, at the upcoming HITEC, there will be a PCI Compliance Boot Camp taking place on Monday, June 12 at 8:30 a.m. It will provide you with background on PCI technologies, best practices, how to pick a QSA, cloud computing and much, much more. Read More »

Frank Wolfe, CAE, CEO of HFTP recently spoke with Merchant Link’s SecurityCents Podcast. Listen to learn about upcoming HFTP projects like HITEC, our partnership with NCA on a technology task force, why PCI compliance is so important to the hospitality industry and more.

According to the Verizon 2010 Breach Investigations Report, the hospitality industry, along with financial services and retail, remains one of the “Big Three” industries affected by breaches. Why have the hackers turned their attention to the hotel industry?

Some reasons include the use of PC-based point-of-sale (POS) or property management systems (PMS) for the processing of payments, the high number of transactions and the retention of card data for reservations. These reasons create a target all too inviting for hackers to pass up.

As hotels become increasingly popular targets for cyber criminals, protecting guests’ credit and debit card data becomes all the more important. Yet, these days it is not enough to just meet the Payment Card Industry (PCI) requirements.

As a vulnerable industry, hotels must look for additional protection to combat hackers and cyber criminals. In just a few brief seconds — from the time a credit or debit card is swiped until the transaction is complete — sensitive cardholder data can be vulnerable. Guests’ credit and debit card data is also extremely vulnerable as it is stored in hotel systems from the time of reservation until check out, as reservations tend to be made in advance.

While PCI compliance is a necessary must, hotels should look to advanced solutions such as end-to-end encryption as the best protection against cyber threats. That type of encryption is the only solution currently on the market that offers protection from card swipe to and through a processing network. Read More »