HOTEL TV
Modern hotel TV network.

What are the standards nowadays?
One may find many commercials on various hotel webpages. They mostly read something like, „you will feel at home” – but this is the expected reality. The guests staying away from home, generally expect to stay in a place with comfortable bed, functioning bathroom, good breakfast, Internet access, as well as good TV. When it comes to TV, the „good” one may be provided when a properly compiled channel packet is in place, and they are to be watched on a good quality, flat, at least 40” wide screen, with proper visual quality.

What are the changing trends?
BYOD/BYOC (Bring Your Own Device/Content), personalized service for each staying guest, possible thanks to interactive TV systems, integrated with PMSs, Room Control and/ or BMS.

Hotel TV in each room becomes a multimedia center, allowing wireless plug-in of mobile devices (tablets, smartphones, laptops) and reproducing guest’s own content (movies, photos, music) or services such as Netflix or YouTube. Almost all guests from X, Y and Z generations, as well as „baby boomers” use more than one mobile device at one time. Proper care for safe access authorization procedure which prevents reproducing one guest’s content by their neighbor from another room, is very important. The usual devices used to facilitate connection with Android or iOS tablets and smartphones are Chromecast devices (attached to each TV set) as well as an access authorization server. The Chromecast devices and mobile devices must operate within the same, stable WLAN network with WiFi use.

The task of modern interactive TV systems is, i.e. welcome message in guest’s mother tongue, including their name, and automatic sorting of TV, radio and world news, according to guest’s nationality. Additionally, the systems should enable the guest to order „on-demand” services (movies, music, Spa and Wellness, room service, shopping, etc.) within and outside of hotel facilities. The systems must also release all necessary information and news, generated by PMS or the reception.
The intelligent interactive TV systems on the one hand supply the guests with entertainment, on the other hand are an additional source of hotel’s income (commercials, paid services) and savings (no more printing of numerous leaflets and pamphlets). The system’s monitoring allows access to viewing statistics of each TV programs, which allows the hotel owner to pay only for the frequently watched programs.

Hotel TV – one of important parts of hotel’s entertainment offer should be an user friendly, fully functional and attractive in its functionality offer and program package. Hotel TV system enhances guests’ comfort, but also supports employees. Apart from TV channels, the guests have access to hotel offers, event schedule, tourist attractions, weather, etc. The personnel may remotely control TV sets, manage content shown and communicate with the guests in real time, which facilitates workload and diminishes operation costs.

The demanding guests nowadays expect also to be able to easily and intuitively manage basic conditions of their stay in the room, like temperature or lighting. Such functions may be accomplished from the TV screen or mobile and remote devices. In the future we should probably expect interactive touch screens which show personalized content, based on aggregated guest data.

The most important functions, in which hotel TV sets differ from private consumer models are: control lock (preventing wrong tuning), TV screen settings lock (brightness, contrast), hotel’s template with logo and greeting at switching-on the TV, ability to cooperate with interactive TV, set-up cloning (immediate recording of the settings on all receiving devices). Merizon provides general solutions for interactive TV for the hospitality venues. Our company may also help in choosing a system that best accommodates preferences and range of activities of our customers.

We work mainly on basis of specialized, proven systems:
+ HOIST GROUP FUSION CONNECTED TV
+ SAMUNG LYNK REACH
+ LG PROCENTRIC
+ PHILIPS CMND
Merizon offers also head-ends, which are a solution intended for receiving and distribution of radio and TV signal, broadcasted by terrestial and satellite transmitters: streamers, tuners, amplifiers and data transmitters. We are co-operating with leading producers of these devices, i.a. WISI, ANEVIA, JOHANSSON, KATHREIN.

What equipment to choose?
Firstly – high quality products. Joy of a low priced device is shortened by disappointment with low quality and high failure rate. When it comes to TV sets, the best choice would be such brands, as Samsung, LG or Philips. Models of those brands include necessary hotel functionalities. The producers assure appropriate service and compatibility with their own hotel TV systems or interactive TV systems, like Hoist Group. The hotel TV sets may be managed, monitored and programmed from one server, without the need to enter a particular hotel room, which is important especially with big, popular hotel venues.

How to appropriately set up a program package?
The choice of an appropriate program package should be tailored, according to the specific guest target groups, their categories and the timeframe of hotel’s seasonal guest density. There is usually a need to supply varying Polish and foreign TV program content, so that everyone may find something for themselves. Quality is more important than quantity. It is also reasonable to consider license and copyright/ royalty payment costs.

How to design a hotel TV system?
The best choice would be to choose specialists. The facilities already operational demand an on-site inspection. In order to stay open for the future solutions already at the wiring design process, one needs to keep in mind few basic issues:

+ Trace a field for satellite and cable TV aerials – the best place would be on the roof;
+ Prepare fiber optic connection for a prospective operator;
+ Prepare a dry, air-conditioned room for head-end and connect the antenna field via fibre optic single-mode cable, power supply and/or 10-coaxial cable bundle;
+ Connect the above mentioned room with every receiving point via ethernet cable for multicast IP signal and/ or 1 coaxial cable in case of DVB-T, DVB-C or DVB-S signal distribution;
+ Provide constant power supply for TV sets, which would allow remote monitoring (starting the TV set by inserting key-card influences functioning of power-supply devices);
+ Provide appropriate active devices for IP i/lub DVB-T, DVB-C, DVB-S signal distribution.