How Long Before U.S. Hotels Abandon Newspapers?

Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts will become the first global hotel company to introduce the PressReader digital newspaper and magazine service brand-wide on Saturday.

The company will replace roughly two million print newspapers distributed to guests annually with PressReader’s digital versions, available for Apple, Android, BlackBerry and Windows.  

The question now becomes: Is this a sign of things to come for hotels and the travel industry, or will the ripple effect be minimal?

To answer that question, consider this first: PressReader, which has been around for nearly 15 years, offers about 2,700 local, national and international newspapers and magazines through its digital service in over 100 countries—1,000 of those have been added in the last 12 months.

If that’s not a sign of the e-reader service taking off, I don’t know what is.

Shangri-La, which first started offering the service through its Traders Hotels brand, has taken PressReader and run with it, now offering it through its Kerry Hotels brand, as well.

In fact, Shangri-La embraced PressReader’s service so much that even Igor Smirnoff, Chief Commerical Officer for PressReader, was a bit surprised.

“We didn't expect the level of engagement that they would show with the rollout of the service, so it was really amazing,” Smirnoff said.

Traders Hotels made a whole YouTube video about its PressReader launch on March 25.

The PressReader service—which is offered through hotels, airlines, cruiselines, buses and high-speed trains—has a number of things working for it in the travel industry, as do e-reader services in general.

For one, it’s less expensive for everyone involved. Take out the cost of paper and production alone and you have yourself a much more cost-effective way of reading the day’s news. 

But PressReader differs from other e-reading services in the past because a wide variety of titles are included once you buy it, instead of having to pay for each individual title separately. Smirnoff called it the Netflix of e-papers, in that regard. More than 60 different languages are spread out through PressReader’s collection of newspapers and magazines.

Which brings us to another point: PressReader can be used throughout the travel industry because it accommodates just about anybody and all it takes is a simple download to start using it. Sure, some hotel companies include iPhones or other mobile devices within their properties, but, as Smirnoff put it, “the reality is people travel with their own devices.”

But why now? Why has PressReader—which has been around since 1999—all of a sudden experienced an influx of business?

Well, for one, Smirnoff credits the introduction of one particular mobile device with a bigger screen as a major driver in business: that’s right, the iPad, and all of the other tablets that followed. To date, 30 million tablets have been shipped with PressReader pre-installed. PressReader was also the first e-paper service used on Windows 8.

On top of that, using less paper is not only cost-effective, but it’s also environmentally friendly. In fact, a big reason why Shangri-La has partnered with PressReader is because of the hotel company’s commitment to corporate social responsibility and sustainability. It’s not a coincidence that the service is being launched company-wide on Earth Hour.

“It is a logical next step within our journey towards sustainable operations,” said Johnson Wong, group director of rooms at Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts. “As part of our commitment to CSR, the group has always looked at ways to reduce waste. Initiatives have included the introduction of biodegradable packaging for bathroom amenities, paperless check in and check out, and food waste reduction in culinary operations. The PressReader service was a unique opportunity to fulfill our targets in waste reduction while enhancing the guest experience.”

Wong, like Smirnoff, doesn’t believe the e-paper success is just a fad.

Asked by TravelPulse if this was just a sign and trend of the times or a sign of things to come, Wong answered:

“It is a sign of the times and a sign of things to come. It is a sign of the times as mobility is key to hotel guests: online booking platforms, information at travelers' fingertips, and customized sources of information. With the PressReader service, guests can choose the news website or newspaper they like, instead of just reading what is available. And reducing clutter always enhances guest experience while being more environmentally friendly.”

Smirnoff added, “Clearly, not only is it a trend, but now it's also a proven way to sell competitively to different markets.”

Shangri-La tested the PressReader service at ten of its hotels ahead of the brand-wide launch on Saturday, including Jing An Shangri-La, West Shanghai. The feedback was positive, with guests primarily liking the e-service because it saved paper and could be read on their mobile devices.

Wong added: “For Shangri-La, it isn't just a fad because it continues our journey towards more sustainable operations. A fad would mean a one-off initiative, which this is not.”

Add Shangri-La to the increasing amount of hotels and businesses that are recognizing the importance of being environmentally friendly in this day and age.

“They have the green message in hotels,” Smirnoff said. “This eco aspect is probably another big driver. We’ve done some studies with publishers and the green eco aspect is the second reason why a lot of people switch from paper to digital.”

As for the future, expect more transportation vehicles to use e-paper services. PressReader has had success working with cruiselines since launching the cruiseline-specific component in September 2013, primarily because the service works offline. Heck, ships in Antarctica and oil rigs are even using PressReader.

You can also expect more magazines to be included in e-readers moving forward. PressReader began incorporating magazines last year, and it added more than 50 magazine titles from U.K.-based company Future on Thursday.

“We strongly believe this is the way for the industry to migrate,” Smirnoff said.

PressReader is available to the general public for $29.95 per month. Customers can also pay 99 cents per publication. PressReader bases its prices for hotels on the number of rooms.

Travel agents can also make up to 25 percent commission by working through one of PressReader’s divisions.

For more information on PressReader, go to PressReader.com.

For more information on Shangri-La, go to Shangri-La.com.