Keyless Mobile Entry Coming to Some Hotels

Starting this week some Starwood Hotels and Resorts guests will be able to access their room if they have a smartphone in their hand. On Wednesday, SPG Keyless goes live at Element and W Hotels around the world and is the first keyless entry system for the hotel industry. SPG Keyless, powered by the SPG app, enables guests to bypass the front desk at properties where its available and go directly to their rooms. Guests then unlock their rooms with a simple tap of their smartphones. The system works by SPG guests registering their phones once through the SPG App and allowing push notifications. After booking a reservation at a keyless hotel and approximately 24 hours before arrival, SPG members are invited to opt-in to SPG Keyless. Guests will receive a push notification noting they are checked in and the SPG App will update with their room numbers and Bluetooth keys when rooms are ready. The system will roll out at ten hotels, including Aloft Beijing, Aloft Cancun, Aloft Cupertino, Aloft Harlem, W Doha, W Hollywood, W Hong Kong, W New York-Downtown, W Singapore and Element Times Square. By early 2015 SPG Keyless will be implemented in some 30,000 doors in 150 hotels. One of the world’s largest lock manufacturers, Assa Abloy, created the system. There are also plans to bring the Apple Watch into the keyless entry picture next year.