TODAY: Hong Kong Tourism Board strengthens relationship with the movie and entertainment industry, Booking Holdings acquires HotelsCombined and Google's Mobile-First Initiative: Everything Hoteliers Need To Know.

Hong Kong strengthens relationship with the movie and entertainment industry
Wednesday, 11th July 2018

Long coveted as a cinematic destination for its iconic skyline and authentic culture, Hong Kong takes center stage as the story's location in Legendary Pictures and Universal Pictures’ summer tentpole Skyscraper, starring global superstar Dwayne Johnson. In the U.S., HKTB is launching the Hong Kong Skyscraper Sweepstakes in partnership with Peninsula and Cathay Pacific Airways >>

Booking Holdings acquires HotelsCombined
11 Jul 2018 : Booking Holdings Inc announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire hotel metasearch site, HotelsCombined and based in Sydney, Australia with a strong presence in APAC and thousands of active affiliates worldwide, HotelsCombined will report into Booking Holdings' leading travel metasearch brand, KAYAK >>

Hyatt plan to eliminate plastic straws and drink picks
11 Jul 2018 : Hyatt hotels around the world plan to eliminate single-use plastic straws and drink picks, so after September 1, 2018, straws and picks will be available on request only, and eco-friendly alternatives will be provided where available >>

UAE joins the top 10 most powerful passports in the world
11 Jul 2018 : Russia and the UAE have signed a bilateral visa waiver agreement, which helped boost UAE's visa-free score to 155, placing it within the Top 10 Most Powerful Passports in the world >>

Huazhu Group emerges as the world's fourth highest value hotel group
11 Jul 2018 : China-based Huazhu Hotels Group Ltd has recently surpassed UK-based InterContinental Hotels Group as the world’s fourth highest value hotel group >>

HIGHLIGHT ARTICLE

Google's Mobile-First Initiative: Everything Hoteliers Need To Know
Wednesday, 11th July 2018

Google’s mission as a search engine is simple and successful: provide web users with the highest quality search and surf experience available and search queries completed on mobile recently surpassed desktop as the majority Google search type. A trend that is expected to continually rise as mobile searching becomes more ubiquitous with smartphone usage and the popularity of voice search continues to bloom.

As the shift in the digital landscape moves through its many stages, Google has followed suit with the obvious and sustaining transformation that the mobile web is here to stay, placing a greater focus on the mobile experience with Google’s announcement of mobile-first indexing >>

Digital Transformation of the Guest Experience
In our new study, we investigate the market challenges facing the industry, this report will ultimately guide you in architecting the modern guest experience.

Download this report to learn how you can lead change within your brand and how to overcome common hurdles including legacy systems and technologies, silos, inadequate customer journeys + outdated guest perspectives and UX >>