According to a new survey by Active Hotels, the provider of confirmed online reservations for the UK hotel industry, the average hotel has increased the price achieved for its rooms over the internet by 6% during the period from June 1 2001 to May 31 2002. The results are based on information from over 800 of Active Hotels` independent hotels and 200 of its group hotels throughout England, Scotland and Wales. A recent KPMG survey supports these findings, showing that corporate customers of hotels booking over the internet have seen a decrease in savings from £12.50 to just £3.75 since this time last year.

Andrew Phillipps, CEO of Active Hotels, comments “Hotels are no longer seeing the internet exclusively as a method for selling distressed stock. Instead, hotels are realising that, used correctly, the internet can be one of the most cost effective methods of selling all their rooms with associated benefits in profitability”.
However, Andrew urges hotels to use caution in their use of the internet and intermediaries. “It is critically important to maintain control of your pricing. The provision of unconditional net rates to intermediaries whereby those intermediaries are free to set the price can lead to considerable price erosion, whereby intermediaries can be showing lower prices to consumers than the hotel themselves. The internet exacerbates this problem as price visibility is considerably enhanced. This has caused significant issues in the USA and has the potential to do the same in Europe.”
Founded in 1998, Active Hotels is the fastest growing provider of confirmed online reservations to the European hotel industry. The company offers independent and group hotels increased reservations by exposing them to a global audience through its extensive and expanding partner network. Active Hotels has over 2,000 hotels and guesthouses under contract and has visibility on over 1,500 websites and electronic networks. Visit Active Hotels` website at www.activehotels.com.

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