Some interesting insight here which points to the growing demand by business travellers for enhanced mobile services before and during a trip.
A poll by Travelport of over 600 corporate travel buyers and others on its Travelport Opinions review and travel information system found a number of important datapoints as travel companies look to address the needs of increasingly better-connected customers.
Some of the important findings include:
Four in five business travellers would like to have mobile applications offering recommendations for restaurants and bars close to a hotel location.
Now, of course, there are many apps that do this already (TripAdvisor, for example), but the important point here is that demand is now growing for such services, meaning those that provide them should perhaps be targeting business travellers in a more effective way.
Meanwhile, two-thirds of respondents expect similar functionality for recreational activities in a destination.
The availability and quality of wifi in hotels is turning into the cause celebre of 2011, especially given how many at ITB in Berlin brought up the issue when asked about ease-of-access to the web when staying at a property.
Around 70% of those polled say technology such as wifi should included as standard in a hotel room (over four in five are optimistic that it will be within five years).
The access issue is becoming more important since the rise and adoption of smartphones. Whereas previously the laptop was the device many business travellers used to access the internet, mostly from their room, web-enabled phones have meant that guests want to be connected wherever they are at a property.
Demand is, once again, driving the need for travel suppliers to evolve.
However, it is not all bad news for hoteliers concerned that savvy travellers will be trying to tech them out of existence - the poll found there was "limited appeal" for mobile concierge services such as the ability to adjust room temperature.