The mobile wallet will be increasingly used by travellers to make all kinds of payments, including hotel reservations – something hoteliers need to take serious cognisance of.
So says Nicolette Kruger, country manager of NFS Technology, the developer and supplier of a range of software for the hospitality and leisure industry, including the Rendezvous software solution – one of the leading software solutions for the conference and events industry.
“It is predicted that there will be almost 250-million NFC-enabled smartphones in use by 2015, meaning this is the number of smartphones coming with mobile wallet capabilities – a figure that cannot be ignored. It is also a figure that will continue to grow astronomically,” says Kruger.
A report by PhoCusWright corroborates this standpoint, predicting that there will be a growth to 247-million near field communication (NFC) devices by 2015, up from just a few million in 2009 – and that these mobile wallet-enabled phones will change the face of the travel industry.
“Travellers will be able to use these phones for paying for a cup of coffee, a bus ticket, or restaurant bills and hotel charges. Travellers are already using similar mobile technology for electronic boarding passes and public transport fare payment.”
Additionally, according to recent press reports, Apple has already filed patents covering the complete travel process on the iPhone, including trip planning, searching, reviewing, booking and buying air, hotel, car rental, train and bus travel using NFC.
“Thanks to this technology, travellers will be able to forgo the queues of the front desk and will be able to go straight up to their rooms,” says Kruger.
“Travellers who want to skip the front desk check-in lines at their next hotel may be able to walk in the hotel’s front door and head straight to their rooms. Hotels must ensure that all front end and back end systems are able to link to the growing number of NFC smartphones, or else take the risk of losing current clientele, and potential clientele.
“Because, with this technology, on the day of their check-in, guests will simply get a mobile message with their room number and a unique acoustic code keyed to the lock on their room door. Rather than opening the door with a traditional key card, guests will use their mobile phones.
“From a few million users in 2009 to almost 250-million in 2015 is phenomenal growth. Imagine the next five to 10 years,” says Kruger.
