MasterCard, ACTE Analysis of Hotel eFolio Usage Trends Among Corporate Travel Managers Issued at Lon

Benefits of Electronic Hotel Folio Data to Drive Widespread Adoption in 2006

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. October 14, 2008

PURCHASE, NY and ALEXANDRIA, VA, October 24, 2005. MasterCard International and the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) today issued the results of a comprehensive study and analysis of hotel eFolio penetration and usage trends at the ACTE Global Education Conference in London.

The study, sponsored by MasterCard and conducted by ACTE, provides an in-depth look at how North America corporate travel managers use hotel eFolio and their attitudes and perceptions about this innovative tool. Hotel eFolio data provides corporate travel managers with a detailed breakdown of employee travelers' hotel expenses. Itemized expense information, including room rate, taxes, and amounts spent on amenities such as parking, in-room movies and mini-bar charges, are delivered electronically to the company's expense-reporting tool. Expense data arrive pre-populated in the reporting system, eliminating the need for manual input.

By using hotel eFolio data in conjunction with an expense tracking and management tool, corporate travel managers are better able to monitor compliance with company travel policies, eliminate the need for processing paper receipts and expense reports, and gain valuable business intelligence that empowers them to negotiate discounts and more favorable rates with hotel operators.

The MasterCard-ACTE eFolio study and analysis includes the results of a survey of North America corporate travel managers and representatives of the hotel, corporate card, and expense-reporting industries. The results provide an in-depth look at the utilization rates and benefits of hotel eFolio data, implementation challenges, and other issues related to widespread eFolio adoption.

Among the study's key findings:

Only 12.5 percent of corporate travel managers currently receive hotel folio line item spending data from their payment card providers.

More than three out of four (76.6 percent) say they plan to obtain that data in the near future. Almost half of respondents (47 percent) rated the importance of getting electronic transmission of hotel folio data in their expense management system as "very critical."

Two out of three (65.4 percent) rate the importance of electronic transmission of eFolio data as either "very critical" or "critical" in terms of all the issues related to managing travel. To implement eFolio, and realize all the benefits of enhanced expense data, requires companies to have the proper infrastructure in place, including a mandated corporate card program and utilization of an online expense reporting tool. The study indicates that while corporate customers are at various stages of adoption, widespread utilization may be imminent:

More than six in ten corporate travel managers (61 percent) say they have a mandated corporate card program. Two out of three (65.5 percent) already use an electronic expense reporting tool, and a quarter (24.7 percent) are already accepting a feed from the corporate card issuer with line item hotel folio data. More than seven out of 10 (71.6 percent) say their expense reporting tool is accepting a feed from their corporate card for summary level charges. The majority of respondents that do not have the necessary systems in place say they plan to have them in the future.

"As this study demonstrates, the use of hotel eFolio data is poised to become standard operating procedure in the corporate travel industry," said Bill Mathis, senior vice president of MasterCard International. "Hotel eFolio data transforms old, cumbersome paper-based payments processes into digital information that delivers time and cost savings, supports compliance with corporate travel policies, and allows travel managers to obtain the best deals from hotel chains. MasterCard and its issuers look forward to working with companies around the world to facilitate the widespread adoption of hotel eFolio data."

"The ongoing evolution of travel industry technology is a high priority with this association," said ACTE President Greeley Koch. "Working with MasterCard in developing the statistics to gauge the status of this market segment reflects our overall strategy to promote and drive travel technology development whenever possible. Identifying industry needs and upcoming trends is a key objective of this conference and our educational program."