York’s newest five-star hotel benefits from Swisscom IPTV

The Grand, which opened in May, is tempting clients with Swisscom’s fully interactive guestroom entertainment, wired and wireless Internet Access as well as its Business Centre Services, all delivered through one, converged hotel network.

With its grandiose architecture and sumptuous guestroom decor, the hotel is a perfect example of how technology can enhance the concept of luxury in a historical setting. During the refurbishment Ethernet cabling has been brought to all guestrooms, thus enabling Swisscom to deliver IPTV along with its suite of integrated IP guest services.
 
“IPTV is a major service differentiator for us as it provides not only a wide variety of program choices in full HD quality, but also a truly interactive and personalised service to our guests”, says Andrew Coney, General Manager of The Grand. “Swisscom IPTV represents the best solution for our guests and the best value for the hotel management, allowing us to bundle TV and VoD service with other guest amenities on one single data network.”

At York, the management team decided to use a dedicated area within the IPTV guest interface to highlight some of the services that are on offer at the hotel. For example, new treatments which are available in the spa or speciality dishes in the restaurant can be viewed on screen, and reservations can be made online.

The Grand also offers its guests wired and wireless broadband Internet access through the Swisscom-managed hotel network. A dedicated business zone incorporates seamless connectivity and an office-like infrastructure throughout the meeting space, based on latest wireless technology. Meeting attendees can access the Internet from everywhere. Through Swisscom’s secure online portal, they can connect instantly – without having to go through the hotel’s reception desk first.

“The management team at York took a holistic approach and could see how the benefits of an IP based network would impact what has become their flagship hotel”, says Oliver East, the new sales director UK and Ireland for Swisscom. “By converging multiple guest services onto one network, operating costs and staff workloads can be reduced. Systems talk to each other and this provides a higher level of service personalisation – which can be invaluable for the hotel operator to build customer loyalty and gain additional revenue.”

www.swisscom.com/hospitality