John Russell, Chairman of the AH&LA, has issued a letter pertinent to HITIS and this survey.
Mr. Russell's letter follows:
Letter from John Russell
In 1996, the American Hotel & Motel Association (now the American Hotel & Lodging Association) initiated a program with the objective of creating standards for the integration of various systems within the hospitality environment. At that time, two other groups (the Integrating Technology Consortium and the Windows Hospitality Interface Specifications) involved in the same process agreed that an organization representing the entire Hotel Industry was the logical body to continue the development of any standards. It was with that understanding that the Hospitality Industry Technology Integration Standards (HITIS) process began.
The initial task of HITIS was to create standards that would allow simple and rapid integration between systems. Targets for phase I were Posting Devices (those devices that in some way post charges to a guest folio), Remote Devices (other devices within the hotel environment), and Central Reservation System.
The diligent work of both vendors and lodging suppliers culminated in the completion of 15 standards, with 114 messages. During this process, the AH&LA applied for and received certification from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The AH&LA is the recognized ANSI Standards Development Organization within the Hotel domain.
HITIS has been at the forefront of emerging technologies. When the process began, object technology was the most promising solution. During the process, eXtensible Markup Language (XML) has become a more widely accepted method. As a result, the current standards are published as XML messages. These documents were completed and published in April of 2000, and submitted to ANSI as proposed standards.
In 1999, the OpenTravel Alliance (OTA) was formed, with the objective of creating specifications for all the components of a trip (air, car rental, hotel, leisure, etc.) The Hotel Work Group within OTA expressed a strong desire to adopt the HITIS CRS standards, and in October 2000, the AH&LA and OTA came to an agreement wherein the OTA became the change agent for the HITIS CRS specifications. The AH&LA continues to have the responsibility for the ANSI process for hotel related specifications emerging from the OTA.
As an outcome of the ANSI submission, there were three comments received from the industry. Two of these comments came from OTA members who voiced a concern that the industry is developing two sets of standards. The HITIS/OTA agreement has mitigated these comments. The third set of comments came from a major hotel chain that implemented the HITIS standards. Those comments have been incorporated into the current version of the standards. As soon as we get the specifications from the OTA as per the agreement, the HITIS/OTA specifications will be taken forward through ANSI.
Where we find a need in other areas of Hotel System Integration, the AH&LA will entertain expansion of the HITIS standards, but only where the constituent hotels and vendors express a strong interest. Currently under consideration are Smart Cards, Energy Management, and Casino Management standards.
The AH&LA sincerely solicits your input via this survey, and look forward to your sincere response.
Thank you,
John Russell, Chairman, AH&LA
As was evident in the last presidential election, "Every vote counts". Your sincere and honest response is very important!
PLEASE devote "less than a minute" to answering the 10 survey questions, which address technology integration standards within the hospitality industry.
Respond by selecting the link to the UNLV website below.
Thank you.
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www.scsv.nevada.edu/~pearl/survey2.html
