Visitors to ITB Berlin's 11th hotel conference today had the opportunity to meet Mario, a robot who works in a hotel, as part of the show's Hospitality Day.

Mario is the youngest employee at the Ghent Marriott Hotel in Belgium. Standing 57 cm tall and weighing only six kg, he speaks 19 languages.

Mario was showcased as part of the convention's key topic, digitalisation, with leading hotel experts discussing robots, hi-tech innovations and innovation labs.

This year's show will see Stephan Demmerle, director of the Business Unit Central Europe of the NH Hotel Group and Roland Schwecke of the marketing consultancy DICON Marketing- und Beratungsgesellschaft Berlin closely examine the impact of technology and its effect in the hospitality industry.

China’s largest hotel chain comprising 3,000 hotels is expanding rapidly and exploiting the Chinese fascination with the internet. Starting at 1.30 p.m., Eric Wu, chief financial officer and executive director from Guangzhou, will be talking to Maria Pütz-Willems, editor-in-chief of hospitalityInside.com and organiser of the ITB Hospitality Day, about digital life in the Far East, and how and why the Plateno Hotels Group, part of the hospitality giant Jin Jiang, intends to take on the European market.

There will also be a futurist describing digital natives and three other experts who will be discussing investment in hotel guests.

OTA giants are inseparable from the hotel industry. How are distribution giants changing this sector and how is competition among OTAs changing? Terri Scriven, industry head of Hospitality, Google, London, and Peter Verhoeven, managing director, Europe/Middle East/Africa, Booking.com, Amsterdam, will be facing up to critical questions at 2.45 pm.

With a host of events lined up, The ITB Hospitality Day will take place at the ITB Berlin Convention on the Berlin Exhibition Grounds in Hall 7.1b, the London Room from 10.30 a.m. to 5.40 p.m today (March 10). A live stream will also be available (www.itb-convention.com/livestream). - TradeArabia News Service