London-based Grange Hotels First to Leverage High-Value Services

CHICAGO/BERLIN (ITB, March 10, 2010) — TRAVELCLICK®, the market leader in hotel e-commerce solutions, todayannounced that it is launching Global Hotel Services (GHS), comprehensive salesand marketing support services covering corporate, consortia, and Meetings,Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) markets across the globe.  Exclusively available to customers ofiHotelier®, TRAVELCLICK’s Internet-based, state-of-the-art central reservationssystem (CRS), the offering will enable these hoteliers to drive incrementalrevenue simply and cost effectively through the targeted support and expertiseoffered through Global Hotel Services. Grange Hotels, London’s leading independent hotel chain, is nowleveraging the GHS program to maximize business and meetings revenue for its 15high-occupancy four- and five-star properties located in the United Kingdom.

The support offered toTRAVELCLICK’s participating iHotelier customers will be tailored according tothe individual hotel’s needs and will include on-the-ground expertise andface-to-face customer contact with travel agencies and travel procurementprofessionals.  GHS will also deliver abrand presence at trade shows, ensuring targeted exposure at key industryevents, and will host a number of road shows on behalf of clients throughoutthe year across Europe, the Americas, and Asia..

“This new offering willgreatly benefit our iHotelier customers looking to gain traction in untappedmarkets where having a dedicated sales person was previously considered tooexpensive,” said Jan Tissera, President of TRAVELCLICK International.  “With global coverage in key commercial areasand a clear commitment to delivering effective, custom-tailored solutions forits customers, GHS professionals have a proven track record in drivingincremental business for hotels by increasing awareness and building long-termrelationships, which clearly benefits our customers across the globe.”

Leveraging the expertiseand contacts of former hoteliers specializing in selling and marketingcommercial hotels to the global market, GHS is based in mainland Europe, theUK, and the US and will offer an extended sales force access across these majorcommercial markets. Customers also have access to TRAVELCLICK’s Global CallCentre services, providing multilingual and cross-cultural support for voicereservations throughout Europe, Asia, and the Americas.  Call Centre agents book reservations directlyin the iHotelier CRS, enabling hotels to leverage the superior reportingfunctionality that comes standard with the iHotelier platform.

“At the end of the day,extending your sales influence into new markets without adding more staffproves to be a good business decision for hoteliers—one that delivers highreturns, especially in a volatile economy,” added Barry Wishart, managing director,Global Hotel Services.  “Our strongrelationships with over 6,000 global and regional travel agencies, corporateand MICE accounts mean that we can put participating TRAVELCLICK customersdirectly in front of key decision-makers. With a team that delivers over $100 million in corporate and MICEbusiness, we believe that our services will add real value to iHoteliercustomers, enabling them to build greater global awareness of their portfolioand increase revenues.”

12 March – 10 April 2010

Private View 11 March,6pm

2010 will mark the fortieth anniversary of William Tillyer's spectacular rise to prominence, celebrating afour decade long artistic career which has been as groundbreaking and varied asit has been long, and which shows no signs of slowing in the future! Tocelebrate Tillyer's success to date, Opus Art are proud to present this brandnew series of Limited Edition Digital Prints in the North East for the veryfirst time.

Since studying painting at the city’s Collegeof Art in 1956, Middlesbrough born Tillyer has worked, studied and exhibitedinternationally, making his first woodcuts in Edinburgh in 1962, studyingpainting and etching under William Coldstream and Anthony Gross in London in1960, aand opening his first NewYork solo show in 1974. Tillyer’s international presence has since continued togrow, with shows in Denmark, Australia, Sweden, South Africa, and multiplelocations across the US and the UK, to name only a few. His work is held in collections including The Arts Council of GreatBritain, The Bank of America, The Boston Museum of Art, The Brooklyn ArtMuseum, Melbourne University, The Tate, The Victoria and Albert Museum, andmany, many more.

And so it is with great pleasure that Opus Art announce Tillyer’s returnto his Northern roots with this spectacular show, featuring twelve of his most striking landscape images from across thelast 30 years. Highlighting the breadth and subtlety of Tillyer’s vision, thisstunning series confirms his position as one of the leading figures of BritishContemporary landscape Painting. Utilising the most advanced digitaltechnologies to capture the nuance and intrigue of Tillyer’s touch, the seriesoffers a unique opportunity to own a work by one of the country’s finestpainters.

William Tillyer’s Fortieth Anniversary Print Collection will be on view to the publicat Opus Art Gallery from Friday 12 March, with an Exclusive Private View onThursday 11 March, from 6pm.

Address:                 Opus Gallery                     

                             West Avenue, Gosforth, Newcastle uponTyne, NE3 4ES

Metro:                    Regent Centre or South Gosforth                                

Bus:                       Gosforth High Street                                                

Opening Hours:        Monday– Saturday 10am – 6pm

                             ClosedSundays                          

53 nominees confirmed tobattle for this year’s premier communications industry awards

MORRISTOWN,NJ—March 10, 2010 – Interest in TM Forum’s Excellence Awards 2010">Excellence Awards 2010 has soared to an all timehigh it was announced today, as a record 53 official nominees hit the judgingslate.  TM Forum’s Excellence Awards areregarded as the most prestigious awards of their kind, recognizing globalleadership, innovation and excellence, whilst giving significance to theachievements of companies within the communications industry.

Attracting nominations from Communications Service Providers, suppliers andsystems integrators,  the TM ForumExcellence Awards are widely recognized as truly impartial awards for thecommunications industry.

This year’s awardsinclude four new best practice categories:

·        TM Forum Industry Leadership Award – to be awarded to the companydemonstrating leadership, dedication and commitment to the Forum's industrycollaboration activities, and overall progress in the industry.

·        TM Forum Operational Excellence Award - to be awarded to the Communications Service Providerdemonstrating the most innovative and effective use of TM Forum SolutionFrameworks to deliver tangible cost reduction, efficiency improvement andoperational agility.

·        TM Forum Solution Excellence Award – to be awarded to the supplier or systemintegrator demonstrating the most innovative and effective use of TM ForumSolution Frameworks to deliver tangible cost reduction and efficiencyimprovement.

·        TM Forum Business Innovation Award - to be awarded to the CommunicationsService Provider demonstrating the most innovative and successful new serviceor business model.

As interest in the awardssoar competition will be fierce, with 10 entries for the Industry Leadershipcategory, 11 for the Operational Excellence category, 26 for the SolutionExcellence category and 8 for the new Business Innovation category

An independent panel ofhighly-respected industry experts will review the list and narrow it down tosix finalists in each category. The winners for certain categories will bedecided through an open vote by the 750 TM Forum member companies, andannounced to an audience of more than 2,500 senior executives from the industryat the Forum's flagship Management World 2010 conference on the morning ofTuesday, May 18, 2010.

The Official Nominees forthe TM Forum Excellence Awards 2010 are: