To be successful, hotel companies need to spend more on initiatives such as mobile phone booking technology, smart cards, social networking and product innovation in rooms, 
Deloitte said yesterday at the launch in Dubai of its Hospitality 2015 five-year report on the future of the hotel industry.
- By 2015 hotel rooms could have floors with built-in sensors that light the way for guests
- Doors that can be unlocked through mobile phones
- Alarm clocks that wake guests by increasing the amount of light in their rooms.
- Guests should be able to text or e-mail their preferences so their rooms are set up to meet their requirements.
 “As an industry we are dreadful at technology,” said Alex Kyriakidis, the global managing partner at Deloitte’s tourism, hospitality and leisure division.
Technology spending in the sector is predicted to rise by just 0.9 per cent a year between 2008 and 2013 in terms of the compound annual growth rate.
“In our industry, of course, the airline is leading,” said Mr Kyriakidis.
“Now the airline has converged the entire experience on to your PDA [personal digital assistant]. With some carriers today you can do everything on your mobile phone from your booking, to your check-in, to boarding at the gate by scanning your mobile phone, all the way through on to your chosen seat on the aircraft.
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