AH&LA Multiunit 2003 Series: Audio Interview w/ Joe Humphry, CEO, Travelweb - Discussing 'The New Forces in Hotel Room Distribution.'

Joe Humphry, Chief Executive Officer - Humphry joined Travelweb LLC from his consulting firm, Humphry Service Corporation, which boasted an extensive portfolio of clients and provided marketing services to companies such as American Airlines and Starwood Hotels & Resorts. Prior to his consulting career, Humphry held senior positions with American Airlines in their leisure marketing and sales development groups. Previously, he held positions at Texas Air Corporation as director of leisure marketing and at TransWorld Airlines in sales and marketing. He was also a partner in the incentive/charter operator Travel Sales International.

Travelweb LLC, owned by Hilton Hotels Corporation, Hyatt Corporation, Marriott International, Six Continents Hotels, Starwood Hotels, and travel technology provider Pegasus Solutions, Inc., offers an innovative new method for the online distribution of hotel rooms. For hotel operators, Travelweb LLC automates the distribution of discounted rooms and brings new cost and time efficiencies to the market. Through Travelweb's private label offerings distributed through leading third-party Internet affiliates such as Orbitz, Priceline.com and , consumers have access to a full spectrum of hotel rooms and rates. Travelweb LLC is a private company headquartered in Dallas.

This year's AH&LA Multiunit Lodging Operators & Owners Forum focused on how the various Internet distribution channels are affecting the hotel business and gave attendees methods to effectively manage these channels. Conference speakers included John F. Davis, CEO Pegasus Solutions, Inc., Chris Soder, EVP of Lodging and Vacation Industries, Priceline.com and David Litman, CEO, Hotels.com.

Kevin Heilbronner is the US Editor for wiredhotelier.com and hospitalitynet.org, providing streaming multimedia-content for these websites. Based outside of Washington DC, Heilbronner has worked with Hsyndicate to conduct interviews at several hospitality trade shows in the US and Europe over the last couple of years. His column and content are featured in the Hospitality Net weekly newsletter. A familiar voice in Washington, DC, Heilbronner is the stadium announcer for the NBA's Washington Wizards, WNBA's Washington Mystics and WUSA's Washington Freedom. He resides in Centreville, VA and can be reached via email: [email protected].