/R E P E A T -- Delta Hotels and Resorts Launches Fastest Internet of any Full Service Hotel Chain in Canada/

-'InternetXL' will provide service 20 times faster than household high speed broadband

TORONTO, April 3, 2012 /CNW/ - Delta Hotels and Resorts today announced that 17 of its properties across Canada have upgraded their bandwidth to provide the fastest Internet service available in any full service hotel chain in Canada. This new offering, called InternetXL, will provide service that is 20 times faster than household high-speed Internet.

A recent study¹ shows that the ways in which hotel guests are using broadband has changed radically since 2009. Within a 12 month period, web browsing dropped nearly by half (39% to 20%), while real-time entertainment (i.e. Netflix, YouTube) grew by almost 50 percent (30% to 43%). Within the same time period, the emergence of new categories, particularly real-time communications like Skype, have already made a significant impact.

As a result, travelers are increasingly demanding that hotels provide the technical capability to stay connected to their lives back home while they travel. Many new cloud-based services allow us to take our virtual lives with us when we travel - facilitating access to our libraries of TV and movies, or all the content on a shared office drive, from anywhere that has an Internet connection. Whether they are Skyping with their kids, streaming their favourite TV show or downloading files for work, travelers want a high quality broadband that won't let them down.

"InternetXL provides the functionality for guests to work and play on their own terms while traveling," explains Ken Lambert, Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Delta Hotels and Resorts. "The service goes beyond what most of us can get in our homes by a significant margin. In fact, we're pretty sure that our guests will wish they could take InternetXL back home with them when they leave."

The InternetXL service will be offered at 17 select Delta locations, and is free for a limited time.

InternetXL will also be a favourite for meeting planners. As more and more meetings and conferences include elements such as webcasts, Twitter walls, online demonstrations, heavy downloading and live video streaming, meeting planners are finding the basic Internet services provided by some hotels and convention centres just can't meet the needs of their heavy traffic. This often requires setting up expensive additional access for these events. InternetXL will offer meeting planners the ability to guarantee and reserve Internet bandwidth accessibility and to secure dedicated I.P. addresses for their events, at a price point that cannot be matched by outside providers.

"We have seen an increasing trend with clients who want to integrate online elements into their meetings and events," says Lambert. "With InternetXL, our clients can be confident that they will have reliable service for high bandwidth activities. This is the way that the world is moving, and it's exciting to be leaders in the Canadian hotel marketplace."

InternetXL is now available at Delta Vancouver Suites, Delta Grand Okanagan, Delta Victoria Ocean Pointe, Delta Bow Valley, Delta Calgary Airport, Delta Edmonton South, Delta Winnipeg, Delta Lodge at Kananaskis, Delta Chelsea, Delta Meadowvale, Delta Centre-Ville, Delta Montreal, Delta Quebec, Delta Halifax, Delta Barrington and Delta Beausejour. It will also be available at Delta Ottawa City Centre in mid-April.

In addition to this new service, Delta will also provide its base high-speed Internet access for free in all guestrooms across the chain that do not have InternetXL.

About Delta Hotels and Resorts 

A leading Canadian hotel management company, Delta Hotels and Resorts operates and franchises a diversified portfolio with 43 full-service, city centre and airport hotels and resorts under the Delta brand. Widely regarded as Canada's "brand of choice" by guests and owners, Delta also distinguishes itself as an exemplary employer. It is the only hotel company to have been recognized for its sustained focus on business excellence by the prestigious National Quality Institute with three Canada Awards for Excellence, including the award program's highest honour, the Order of Excellence (2007). The hospitality company has also consistently ranked as one of the country's 50 Best Employers for 12 years, and has been named to the Green 30 since 2010. As well, its national sustainability program, Delta Greens is the most comprehensive and ambitious in the hospitality industry touching on every aspect of the hotel business. Delta's Corporate Social Responsibility platform, Delta Helps, includes a chain-wide commitment to the communities it serves through a national partnership with Habitat for Humanity Canada, participation in the Hotel Association of Canada's Green Key Eco-Rating program, and work with various other charitable groups. For more information, please visit www.deltahotels.com

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¹ Sandvine's Global Internet Phenomena Report 2010

Sandy Indig
Delta Hotels and Resorts
416-874-2018 (office)
416-409-0649 (cell)
[email protected]