“A lot can happen in 40 years, but when it comes to technology, 40-years is like going back to the days of Moses or the Roman Empire.” Richard Goodwin… and it’s true.
While the mobile phone has been around since the 70’s, it wasn’t really until the launch of Apple’s iPhone in 2007 that the mobile space rapidly changed forever. Apple’s iPhone was responsible for popularising applications with millions of consumers, helped make touchscreen interfaces the norm, and broke new ground for overall design and finish.
From here on out innovation and mobile device development began progressing faster than ever before.
A study from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) found that globally, 75% of mobile users come from the smartphones category and more than two-thirds of American adults now own a smartphone. While it has been said that telephones took nearly 80 years to reach half of U.S. households, Smartphones did it in less than 10 – Mobile technology has become part and parcel of daily life for most.
So what does all this mean?
In the past few years, mobile technology has shaken up many industries including travel and hospitality unlike any other innovation in quite some time.
As this technology has become firmly embedded into our everyday and ubiquitous in everything we do, guests are now a more self-sufficient bunch and more and more guests want control over their hotel experiences along with real time personalization.
Gone are the days when offering Wi-Fi at a hotel was enough; travellers are booking hotels, finding travel information, and controlling every detail of their trips from their smartphones and tablets.
As a result, guests now expect the same comforts and conveniences when away from home and expect to see mobile technology integrated into their hotel experiences.
“Travellers are setting standards across the globe when it comes to leveraging the latest mobile services. Not only do travellers have the highest rates of smartphone adoption, they’re also doing more with their devices like booking, payments and check-ins…Their expectations for intelligent, personal experiences via mobile are high and continue to rise. Travellers are setting the bar for these services and will drive new innovations in the travel industry and beyond”, Clinton Anderson, Senior VP Traveller Experience Sabre Travel Network.
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