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Daily Archives: 6 Nov 2009

M&C says its revenue slide easing

Posted on 6 Nov 2009 | Comments Off

But it warns that trading could take more than two years to recover

Hotelier Millennium & Copthorne said the worst of the recession may be over as its rate of revenue decline slowed but warned that it could take more than two years for trading to recover to the levels seen in 2007.

M&C, which operates 120 hotels across the world, said yesterday that revenue per available room (RevPAR), a key industry measure, dropped by 17.7 per cent in the third quarter compared with a fall of 21.3 per cent in the second quarter.

That trend continued into October, with RevPAR down by 12.8 per cent last year, M&C said. London saw growth of 0.6 per cent during the month, with New York RevPAR falling 17.9 per cent and Singapore down 26.5 per cent.

‘I believe that the industry is moving in the right direction. The rate of decline of our global RevPAR has slowed quarter-on-quarter and this trend has continued into October,’ said chairman Kwek Leng Beng.

‘While it is too early to predict with accuracy how markets will behave in 2010, we are encouraged by these improving trends which suggest that the worst may be behind us,’ he added. Continue reading →

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Tagged Hotels, Millennium & Copthorne

Resorts World Sentosa places $21m bet on SingTel

Posted on 6 Nov 2009 | Comments Off

RWS is one of the first corporate backers of SingTel’s pay-TV service

SINGAPORE Telecom’s corporate pay-TV ambitions got a boost yesterday from a $21 million deal to provide a multimedia entertainment system and other technology services to Genting Singapore’s Resorts World Sentosa (RWS).

All-in-one: SingTel will equip rooms with an in-room entertainment system and high-speed wireless Internet

Under the seven-year contract, the operator will equip all 1,800 rooms at the integrated resort’s six hotels with an in-room entertainment system and high-speed wireless Internet.

Guests will be able to surf wirelessly and access computer games, music and content from SingTel’s mio TV service.

RWS is one of the first corporate backers of the operator’s fledgling pay television service, which until recently has been offered to consumers only.

Businesses such as hotels, restaurants and pubs are central to SingTel’s pay-TV strategy, as they could be more lucrative than the consumer segment. Having paid a premium for the English Premier League (EPL) broadcast rights, SingTel also needs to tap the corporate segment to help recoup costs.

SingTel previously told BT it has conducted in- house trials to see how it can deliver mio TV content such as the EPL to business customers.

Besides wireless Internet and multimedia entertainment, SingTel will also deploy a location-based mobile advertising service for RWS.

This will allow guests to receive text and multimedia messages when they are near pre-defined locations. For example, a customer might receive an electronic dining coupon via their mobile phone when they are walking towards a particular restaurant.

The multi-million dollar contract also includes a system to manage and track RWS’ fleet of limousines.

Source : Business Times – 6 Nov 2009