1. Provides interface to create hotel products and store/ modify/delete hotel data. Multiple actions can do the same thing
2. Interface to build hotels pages and classify images and save text format information as well
Incremental , offline , static(brochure) , dynamic (transaction), inside city state Dynamic
creation is done at a price
Print Pages on other sites
Send HTML over TCP/IP
Tag Images for data -screens we print
User Interface of different types produced
Spread Sheet multiple screens
3. Room type Additions, modifications and deletions
4. Interface to fast loader and resulting calendar view of inventory data
Five, six, seven types, remote loader vital
5. Interface to close out calendar providing fast access to stop sell actions..
GRID fax
6. Rooming List view and delivery on the customer day of arrival
7. Activity reports to display availability view , info pages views( People interested but did not buy). Transaction views and transactions along with conversion rates (hits converted )during the process.
Transaction View: How many times entered and how many booked
8. Admin: Invoices tracking system for hotels-integrated with accounting for hotel payment generation and tracking. One check is able to pay multiple hotels invoices and multiple hotel reservations.
9. Provides accounting repots for outstanding invoices, payments made by hotel, by period and check generation in batches for payment
10. Provides inventory management reports and quality assurance reports
11. Provides system to display customer comments /complaints by hotel
12. Provides XML interface to allow building new hotel " Look and FEEL" pages
13. Build first display of hotel page view with map- directions -local info functions
14. Provides pricing functions with variables markups applied as $ fees. Markups can be applied
by hotel product ,area, hotel group, site identity, ( which major site did they register , partner ID
partners client ID and brand name)
15. Provides functions and UI to capture hotel options and price them based upon hotel
specifications before passing on to the transaction system
16. Provides interface to transaction system to Provide it the entire data set required for creating a transaction and storing the data in the transaction tables
17. Hold, Book and release inventory as signaled by the transaction system
18. Develop remote loader to allow hotels to manage their inventory offline and go on line occasionally for updates
 

1. Provides interface to hotel pricing and options page - Collecting data to begin performing the transaction
ID availability , request build a grid
2. Signals hotel system to hold inventory while transaction is in process
3. Performs add on sales functions
4. Child charges, Honey -moon suite extra for champagne and flowers
5. Complete or roll back inventory based upon the results of transactions
5. Send out a message to the hotel if inventory is sold out as a result of successful
transaction.. Also to the company.
6. Record Partner Information along with the transaction.
7. Assign a transaction ID to the booking

Black out- No sales
Distinction between inventory and holding
Generate transaction
State of booking will not dictate inventory
Locking inventory during payment transaction only
IF sold out, take request from customer and then send confirmations to the customer

8. Provides client ability to hold booking for upto 48 hours (provided arrival date is 48 +72 hours) and recover it for delayed payment process
9. IT Process payment recording each payment attempt and merchant transaction information
10. Assigns a booking number to the transaction if successful
11. Set the state of a booking -payment pending -mode of payment-etc
12. Allow updates to bookings-payment mgt -agent notes-confirmations-settlement-status
changes-interface to messaging system
13. Provides automated functions that relate to FAX/email /Snail Mail functions
14. Expose a query interface to accounting, admin support and other modules
15. Archive and synchronize transaction as defined in data replication scenarios
16. Third party transactions

2. Many payment processing contracts can be handled with many forms of payments, general payment types
A. Tele-check: Computer based check
B. Credit Cards- AMEX, VISA, MASTER CARD, DISCOVER, JCB, and others
C. Western union Payment system
D. Module interfaces to suppot others

3. Fault tolerance design is provided . Any one of these systems may be down and we are able to try other providers of the same form of payment, to request alternate forms of payment of to take information and queue for processing later.

4. Each payment system can have limits and preferences so that a priority can be established on which will be used first and for how much processing

5. Payment types may be changed depending on customer type

6. Manual steps can be added (fax back a signature on confirmation) depending on amount of the booking, user, payment type(credit card, check) or processor attributes( American express and not another credit card), Booking amount >$500: make sure about the booking

Email messages are either enhanced html or plain text depending upon
» User agent set in client 's cookie
» User Agent stored in clients 'server side data file
» Type of template(in template attributes)
» Type of user(hotel, partner, client and Administrator, etc)
» Combination of any of the above

All messages ( system generated or otherwise) are linked as appropriate (by foreign keys) to partner, seller, hotel or client

Messages are logged so that messaging activity is auditable
Messages are able to proceed on priority basis

System generated Messages -Distribution -priority ( We should be able to add to this list easily and to schedule them to go immediately or based on priority and /or time and suppress for specific targets as necessary -e.g. suppress pricing changes for net rates Hotels)
1. Booking confirmation to the client-client hotel and admin list-high list server à Support
2. Agent generated custom message-client /and/or/hotel List- High
3. Client request confirmation of modifications request. Lists - High
4. Client Confirmation voucher-client -Lists - High
5. Payment Confirmation Request -Client . Admin Lists -High
6. Hotel search- no availability -problem report-admin ,lists - High
7. New Hotel Registration - Hotel, admin, List -Med.
8 New Partner Registration- Partner, Admin ,List- Med.
9 Rooming List-Hotel , admin ,lists -low
10 Delivered in the morning 7 am, local time. Tells the hotel who is arriving
11 Hotel inventory change confirmation -Hotel, Admin, Lists LOW
12 Optional partner transaction confirmations ,several types-Partner, admin list -Low
13 Auto system generated report-Admin List-Low
14 Hotel payment Tracking report -admin, Hotel, List -Low

Inbound
Inbound Messages are parsed and stored in the database with reference links to the actors as required., Inbound sorting of fax files and performs the functional Of archival ( Multiple fax files) for further processing. ). In addition ,each inbound communication has a status (example: Handled., pending, Urgent)etc. So that work may be prioritized based on status. Each item will be parsed or reviewed by human so that hotel, clients ,partner ,payment etc link is created . Inbound Items have administrative capabilities -adding notes to communication handling-responding by FAX, Email, voice or snail mail . You can see this in the current message centre. Support Message types
a. Fax
b. Mail
c. Email
d. Voice
e. Snail Mail
 

Automated Quality Assurance on Page Delivery ( QA )
1. Anomaly detection
2. Unsupported agent detection Offtime
3. Logging of Anomalies
4. Page error management
5. Reaction planning and deployment
Design should support people deploying

SEARCH ENGINE FRIENDLY SUPPORT

1. Passes URL parameters in directory format for seach engines
Format for search engine :
http://www.hotelquest.com/index.rex122303/new%20yank
http://www.hotelquest.com/index.htm?namerex&date-122301&…
search engine stops at ?
2. Get Request Formatting
3. Private data is always posted so that search engine can not follow
4. Monitors penetration of search engine spiders by recognizing them
5. Produces a report of search engine activity
6. Creates a report of search engine activity
7. Creates a reverse proxy server to ensure that no one system can totally block resources.

(defense against denial of service attacks by hackers and search engines cfesspresso.com has information on similar architecture)
 

There are three format in which our partners integrate to our system :

1. Pegasus Interface : Pegasus is a distribution system that powers about 100 major sites in the US
2. WDDX - XML : This interface is packet based. It uses packet interchange concepts but implements them over wddx.
3. Sockets : This interface is identical to the XML interface but implements this over secure VPN links to partner systems.

The fundamental purpose of the support system is to manage and perform customer relationships in the context of a reservation ( previous , current , or future ) . The major functions performed are :

1. Perform the booking process :
a. Customer makes a reservation on the system or otherwise and an email / fax is sent to the hotel , the customer and to those employees subscribed to a particular mail list
b. Support follows up on all reservation obtaining confirmation.
c. Before entering the reservation into the system , support processes the payment , then enters the hotel confirmation number and the hotel employee name ( who confirmed the reservation )
d. Guest stays at the hotel. If there are any problems with stay or reservations this department provided required support.
e. After departure support issues credits when due to customers.
f. Accounting takes over at this point and pays the hotel.

2. Assist customers in modifying their reservations - cancellations , additions and deletions of days change credit cared etc

3. Assist customers in making new reservations.

4. Assist hotels in reconfirming reservation components

Support System Processes

1. Able to view bookings in the following ways
a. By arrival date - or arrival dates chronologically - ascending and descending
b. By specific status - unconfirmed - problems etc. We have a list of status
c. Transaction Number
d. Guest Name or Buyer Name
e. Seller ID
f. Hotel Name
g. Any String in transaction
h. Product ID
i. Affiliate ID
j. Transaction by calendar

2. Navigate to booking view which should contain
a. All information on the current booking view and
b. Messaging system enhancements for other message types
c. Dynamic inventory enhancements to return inventory when cancelled or modified

3. Add invoice and status lines of following types
a. Any change in booking $ amts
b. Any change in stay
c. Any change in Status
d. Confirmations and cancellations
e. Notes lines
f. Other lines currently supported

4. Payment processing support integrates the booking with payment processing module for payment processing functions defined and those currently supported

5. Status changes and modifications

6. Settlement view support - shows payments to hotels for specific bookings

LOAD MANAGEMENT SYSTEM ( LOADMAN )

Maintains a current state of resources on the local server and reroutes requests if server load parameters are exceeded. This needs to be done in a client transparent manner and in less than 100 ms

CLIENTS

Cheapeastdeals, Inc
Hotelquest International, Inc

CASE STUDIES