SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVISIONING OF INTERNET ACCESS SERVICES IN A GUEST FACILITY

Abstract

A system and method for provisioning Internet access services to guests of a facility (e.g., one or more hotel chains). Equipment and devices for access service are installed throughout the facility. Each device that supports the Internet access services has a unique identifier. Zones representing various public and private areas within each facility are defined and one or more devices are associated with each zone. Service offerings for wired and wireless connections are defined and associated with one or more zones. Service offerings are also paired with pricing plans that provide various payment options and amounts. A web-based administration application allows an administrator to define and manage service offerings associated with the zones. The application also allows the administrator to define and manage the pricing plans. The ability to customize offerings in each facility allows development of consistent offerings, regardless of the size or layout of the facility.

Claims

1. A system for provisioning Internet access services in a multi-floor facility comprising: (a) a plurality of access points installed within said facility; (b) a database storing data identifying: (i) at least one unique network identifier for each of a plurality of said access points; and (ii) a plurality of Internet service offerings, each of said service offerings comprising: (1) a property code; and (2) at least one zone identifiers corresponding to one or more of said at least one unique network identifiers; (c) a server operatively connected to said database; and (d) a network connection between said server and each of said plurality of access points wherein each of said access points is configured to execute instructions received from said server to: (i) receive an Internet access request via at least one of said access points; (ii) select one of said internet service offerings according to said unique network identifier, said property code, and said zone identifier.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein a first subset of access points is located in a public accessible zone of said facility and a second subset of access points is located in a restricted zone of said facility.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein said public accessible zone comprises a lobby in said facility and said restricted zone comprises guest rooms in said facility.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of said Internet service offerings comprises a payment feature.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein said service offerings comprise an expiration date.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein said network connection is wireless.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of devices and components for providing Internet access services in a hotel;

[0011] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the designation of zones providing Internet access in a hotel;

[0012] FIGS. 3-5 are example screens for an administration application to define and manage service offerings and price plans for Internet access services in a hotel; and

[0013] FIGS. 6 and 7 are sample Internet access screens for use by guests of a hotel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0014] Referring to FIG. 1, a block diagram of devices and components for providing Internet access services is shown. A hotel 102 is equipped with various devices and other equipment (e.g., data ports, cables, etc.) for providing wired and wireless Internet access services to guests. An Internet gateway device 112 manages NATd (network address translation) IPs, provides DHCP (dynamic host configuration protocol) and opens and closes ports allowing hotel guests to access a local router 110 connected to the Internet 108. The gateway device 112 also manages time allotments, such as several hours worth of access, three days of access, etc.

[0015] The gateway device 112 may communicate with a property management system (PMS) 114 via an RS-232 cable or similar type of link. When a guest checks into a hotel, identifying information for the guest such as the guest's first and last name is entered into the PMS 114. Identifying information may be received from other sources such as reservation systems. Once the guest is checked into the hotel, additional identifying information such as the guest's room number is added to the data stored in the PMS 114. The guest identifying data such as last name, first name, and room number facilitates confirming the guest's registration status when Internet access services are requested. The PMS 114 provides guest identifying data for guests such as a list of guest names in a specific room number and receives posting transactions from the gateway device 114 via a messaging interface.

[0016] The PMS 114 also communicates through the gateway 112, router 110, and Internet 108 via a private WAN with one or more data centers 100. A first data center 104 may provide centralized authentication services to confirm that an Internet access request is from a guest of the hotel. A second data center 106 may provide portal services such as credit card authorization, accounting, billing, and reporting.

[0017] Access points and other equipment for defining wired and wireless local area networks (LANs) are installed throughout the hotel. One or more wired networks 116 may be defined to provide wired Internet access services in guest rooms 118 while one or more wireless networks 120 may be defined to provide wireless Internet access services in public areas 122 of the hotel such as the lobby, bar, and restaurants.

[0018] Referring to FIG. 2, a block diagram illustrating the designation of zones to support Internet access services in a hotel is shown. In an example embodiment, access points installed throughout the hotel are grouped into virtual local area networks (VLANs). In the example zone designations of FIG. 2, each guest room floor 200, 202, 204, 206 is defined to be a separate zone and is assigned its own VLAN identifier. The first floor, which may comprise several public areas (e.g., restaurant, lobby, lounge) 208 and semi-private areas (e.g., meeting rooms) 210, 212, may be divided into multiple VLANs. One or more access points are included in each zone identified by a VLAN. Each virtual grouping of access points into a VLAN may correspond to a large or a small physical area within the facility depending upon the needs of the facility. One or more public, semi-private, or private areas may be defined. Zones may also be defined according to the types of service offerings the hotel would like to extend to its guests as well as the pricing plans it would like to offer. The use of zones allows a hotel chain to offer consistent services regardless of the physical layout of each property.

[0019] Referring to FIGS. 3-6, example screens for an administration application to define and manage Internet access service offerings and price plans are shown. Referring to FIG. 3, an example service offering screen 300 is shown. The screen allows a user to review the Internet access service offerings for a selected property. The offerings may be filtered according to status 302. Each offering comprises an identifier 304, a description 306, a minimum and maximum bandwidth for the offering 308, an effective and expiration date 310, and version number 312. An edit option 314 is also provided. As indicated in FIG. 3, different Internet service offerings may be defined for different areas or zones of the hotel such as guest rooms, the hotel lobby, and meeting rooms 306.

[0020] Referring to FIG. 4, an example edit service offering screen 400 is shown. The screen allows a user to edit an Internet access service offering for a hotel. The screen identifies the relevant service offering identifier 402 and property code 404. The user can specify a minimum and maximum bandwidth 406 for the offering as well as an IP type 408 (e.g., private, public, or both which allows guest to select type). The user further specifies the connection and roaming zones 410 in the hotel to which the offering applies. The user specifies the connection and roaming zones by referring to the corresponding VLAN identifiers used to designate the zones. Connection zones are zones from which guests may make an initial connection using this service offering. Roaming zones represent zones from which a user is allowed to connect after an initial connection is made from a connection zone. For example, a service offering may be defined that requires a guest to initially connect from a guest room, but subsequently permits access from the lobby or another public area. In the example screen shown, initial connections (i.e., the connection zones) may be made from zones 1-299 and 311-899. Once a guest has made an initial connection from one of the zones in the ranges 1-299 or 311-899, the guest may connect again from any of the zones 1-899. The user may further specify effective and expiration dates for the service offering 412. Finally, the user may edit the public and internal descriptions 414.

[0021] At the bottom of the screen, price plans and promotions using the service offering 416 are shown. As indicated, the service offering may be associated with more than one Internet access service price plan or promotion.

[0022] Referring to FIG. 5, an example edit price plan screen 500 is shown. The screen allows a user to edit an Internet access service price plan that may be associated with one or more service offerings. The screen identifies the relevant price plan identifier 502 and property code 504. The user can specify a service offering 506 to be associated with the price plan. The user can select a price type 508 (e.g., public, access code, or private), specify a price 510, and select duration ranging from hours to weeks 512. The user may further specify effective and expiration dates 514 for the offering and provide a description 516.

[0023] Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, sample Internet access screens for use by guests of a hotel are shown. Referring to FIG. 6, a sample screen for a guest of a first hotel in a hotel chain is shown. Within the hotel, an access screen is selected for a guest according to the zone in which the guest is stationed when requesting access. When a user requests access, the access point that receives the request provides the VLAN for the zone which is then used along with other information about the guest to determine which Internet access screen to display. For example, if a user is in a guest room using a wired connection, a screen 600 as shown in FIG. 6 may be displayed. The screen displays for the user one or more price plans 602. As shown in the screen, hourly and daily options are presented. In addition, the user may be prompted for a promotion code related to an Internet service promotion offered to the guest 604. For example, frequent guests may receive free services for a certain period of time as part of a loyalty program. Finally, the screen displays for the user a payment option 606. Because user is a confirmed guest in the hotel, the user may be presented with a bill-to-room option.

[0024] Referring to FIG. 7, a sample screen for a guest of a second hotel in the same hotel chain is shown. Within the hotel, an access screen 700 is selected for a guest according to the zone in which the guest is stationed when requesting access. The access point that receives the request provides the VLAN for the zone which is then used along with other information about the guest to determine which Internet access screen to display. In this example, the service offering requires only an access code 702 from the user to establish an Internet connection.

[0025] The present invention allows a company that manages a variety of guest facilities to provision Internet access services efficiently and in a consistent manner across facilities. For companies that manage facilities under different brands, the system and method allow the company to define a consistent guest experience across each brand. The ability to provide a consistent guest experience under a particular brand helps the company to increase each guest's brand awareness and appreciation. The ability to meet an important need of business and leisure travelers helps the company to increase guests' brand loyalty.

[0026] Appendix A provides technical details of page layout designs and content for an administration application to support geographic provisioning of Internet access Services. Appendix B provides connection log details regarding information that is stored for each guest Internet connection.

[0027] While certain embodiments of the present invention are described in detail above, the scope of the invention is not to be considered limited by such disclosure, and modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention as evidenced by the following claims.