Application Story

SONY / Business Solutions

WORLD'S FIRST "VIRTUAL CONCIERGE" RIGHT AT HOME WHILE SERVING HOTEL GUESTS

The Westin of Santa Clara Connects Hotel Clientele To Guest Services Remotely Through Sony Videoconferencing Units

What's a hotel to do when its head concierge goes on maternity leave? The Westin of Santa Clara, Calif., a AAA Four Diamond Award hotel serving Silicon Valley, calls on Sony's Contact-ME (pronounced Contact Me) videoconferencing technology to let mom telecommute - allowing her to balance career and personal life. By tapping the expertise of Interactive Multimedia Artists, Inc. (IMA), a leading multimedia communications design firm from Santa Monica, Calif., the Westin developed a technology solution that would enable the hotel's invaluable employee to be at home with her new three-month old baby boy and continue her hotel duties, as one of America's 24 million telecommuters.

According to IMA's Skip Rodenbush, the hotel's owners, Strategic Hotel Capital, turned to IMA and Sony to make a virtual connection, putting guests of The Westin in touch with Anna Morris, the hotel's head concierge. With a wealth of important contacts, Morris provides her guests with the best seats at shows, sporting events and the like, and offers recommendations on area attractions based on their particular interests.

The concept of a "virtual concierge" was the brainchild of Strategic Hotel Capital along with the support of IMA, widely recognized for their expertise in harnessing the power of virtual communications through videoconferencing or streaming audio/video over the Internet.

Using the Sony Contact-ME Videoconferencing System and a T1 connection, Morris connects remotely from her home office in Antioch - a three-hour round trip -- to the hotel whereby she appears on a large screen monitor to greet and engage guests in discussion about their needs, offer advice and take requests.

"For a truly interactive experience, the dockable pan/tilt/zoom camera feature on the Contact-ME system automatically follows Morris as she moves around her home office -- so hotel guests don't get a static image of her, making for a more personable experience," stated Rodenbush.

Sony's Contact-ME videoconferencing set-top box - one of the smallest in the world -- is a plug-and-play system with a built-in microphone. It is compatible with the H.320 standard for visual communications, allowing the set-top to connect to virtually any videoconferencing system in the world. The unit weighs roughly six pounds and lists for $9,995.

According to Morris, "For the past eight years, I've commuted through three hours of Bay Area traffic from my home in Antioch to the hotel. I could see this solution working for me and literally for thousands of others in similar situations."

"Anna is not just our concierge, she's an invaluable asset to our hotel," said Santa Clara General Manager Bruce Carpenter. "We have a very loyal clientele who depend on her outstanding service. With the Virtual Concierge system IMA has designed, they will be able to talk with her via a live video visit with her from the Concierge Desk in the lobby."

"We're in the high tech center of the world. Where else would you expect to find a Virtual Concierge? It's just a natural," commented Richard Brooks, Director of Sales.

The Westin strives to provide customers with the highest levels of service possible using proven leading-edge technologies. Through videoconferencing and webcasting services, The Westin Santa Clara allows event planners to electronically extend their meetings from Silicon Valley to anywhere in the world. The Virtual Concierge service is an extension of the Westin's overall commitment to customer service.

Westin Hotels and Resorts with more than 115 hotels and resorts in 23 countries, is owned by Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT). Starwood is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with more than 725 properties in 80 countries and 120,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. With internationally renowned brands, Starwood is a fully integrated owner, operator, and franchiser of hotels and resorts including: St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, Sheraton, Westin, Four Points and W brand, as well as Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts.

A privately held firm founded in 1997, Strategic Hotel Capital targets upscale and luxury hotels on a global basis for acquisition. It seeks larger hotels (200-plus rooms) managed by a group of very select, "preferred" operators. Since its inception, SHC has assembled a portfolio of properties in the United States, Mexico and Europe. Hotels in the SHC portfolio include the Essex House, A Westin Hotel, New York City; The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, Dana Point,Calif.; the Hyatt Regency New Orleans; the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero and the Park Hyatt, both in San Francisco; and the Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. IMA is a multimedia communications design firm located at 3350 Ocean Park Boulevard in Santa Monica, CA. Its founders have a collective 100 years of experience in film and video production and voice, video and data communication. IMA serves organizations wanting to apply virtual live and interactive communications technologies to every day business operations.

IMA helps its clients develop new and unique applications that can increase revenues and differentiate them from the competition. VIDEOCONNECT™ is a service for hotels that enables them to provide guests and event planners the ability to extend meetings or events beyond the hotel's four walls to a worldwide audience.