Is That All There Is?

Besides having your LEC supply your property with DSL service there are various other ways of supplying your guests with high-speed internet access. Here are just a few:

Wireless Internet has arrived! Wireless internet providers are rapidly deploying their services throughout the country. This means that you DO NOT have to order additional wired services from your LEC. The service comes directly to your property from an antenna placed on your rooftop. The service is just as fast as hard wired DSL services. However, the wireless transmission speeds are equal in both directions. Both IP providers will charge monthly fees, but the wireless fees are usually substantially lower. The wireless providers can easily and efficiently increase the “bandwidth” on demand instantly, while with LEC provided services, as the demand increases, additional copper telephone lines must be ordered and installed. The effective range of wireless DSL is 25 miles from the service providers transmission point. However, the effective throughput speeds can decrease by 5 to 10% when heavy rain or hail is present. Further, the distances are hampered by mountainous terrain and in some instances by trees.

Let's Go Fishing

Access to the Internet is also measured by two unique terms: “upstream” and “downstream”. Upstream is the term applied for the TRANSMISSION of data FROM the user’s computer to the ISP’s equipment. Conversely, “downstream” is the speed at which data is transmitted from the ISP’s equipment TO the users computer.

The typical speeds at which hard wired DSL connections travel at are:

Up to l.544Mbps downstream with 128Kbps upstream
Up to 6Mbps downstream with 384Kbps upstream
With wireless DSL providers the upstream and downstream speeds are equal with speeds up to 10Mbps.

All Of This Is Very Confusing. How Would It Work In My Property?

The following is a typical hotel’s wiring diagram utilizing TUT SYSTEMS hospitality product. Notice that the system utilizes the hotel’s existing telephone wiring scheme. There is no need to add any additional wire, break any walls, or add any additional telephone closets. It does not matter which method is used to deliver the DSL signal to the property. The property can choose to wire all of the rooms or just a floor or even have a checkerboard setup. There is no need for your IT personnel to configure the guest’s computer! Most guests already have the laptop’s connection device with them. Billing the guest is automatic.

Please note: there are other systems available, we are not recommending just one solution!

Why, you ask, should I even care about this? The reason: Most business travelers today are accustomed to very fast T-1 access lines in their offices which are always on and operate up to 50 times faster than a typical dialup modem. While a second phone jack does enable simultaneous use of the phone and the Internet it is not nearly sufficient, as the maximum speeds that the guest can connect at is 28.8 Kbps. An executive traveling to deliver a presentation will have limited patience for a slow dial-up connection when it becomes necessary to download a few updated slides from the home office at the last minute. Such bandwidth-intensive tasks can easily overwhelm even the fastest dial-up link. Even reading his email can be a very long tedious experience. Broadband connections enable users to access corporate databases, download large multimedia presentations, participate in real-time video conferencing and access the Web at a fraction of the time it would take using a modem.

Any hotel that intends to successfully compete in the hospitality market must offer broadband access to it’s guests. Whether you do or don’t offer broadband access, rest assured that your competitors down the street WILL be offering it very, very shortly, if not already! The use of high speed Internet access in your property WILL increase your ADR as well as your occupancy rate... And that’s the truth!

Les Spielman is president of Hospitality Automation Consultants Ltd., an independent consulting firm. With more than 20 years of experience in the lodging business, he provides assistance with automation tasks on a personalized basis. Hospitality Automation Consultants Ltd. has successfully completed over 2,000 consulting projects throughout the world. He was just reelected to his third consecutive term to the Board of Directors of the Society of Telecommunications Consultants. His practice is global. Spielman welcomes inquiries at:

Hospitality Automation Consultants Ltd
Valley Village, CA 91607
phone: (818) 763-4449
fax: (309) 403-4035,
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