Starwood App Gets Mobile Check-in, New Features, and Systemwide Rollout By End of 2017

Jun 01 2017

Starwood’s app now features mobile check-in at 22 properties which do not offer ‘keyless’ functionality, and they plan to expand this systemwide by the end of the year, and they have additional features planned for 2018.

While bringing this feature to Starwood properties is part of the integration work between Marriott and Starwood, continued development of the Starwood app including plans for new features next year, underscores the long timeline required to bring Starwood and Marriott together as a single brand and into a single loyalty program.

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Blood in the Water in Rome: With Alitalia on the Brink of Failure, Norwegian Air Introduces Super Cheap Flights

May 31 2017

While claiming that the decision isn’t driven by a floundering Alitalia, Norwegian announced Rome as a Boeing 787 base today.

No doubt Alitalia’s bankruptcy filing a month ago makes Rome even more appealing, but the carrier was bleeding even before that. Their costs are high and their operations inefficient. And their ability to expand across the Atlantic in an advantageous way is, they say, hamstrung by a revenue-sharing joint venture agreement with Air France and Delta that’s a legacy from when Air France was a major investor in the airline.

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