How Hotels Can Leverage Android TV Setup to Boost Guest Experience

An Android TV setup is a cost-effective solution for hoteliers who are still burdened with the monthly costs of providing TVs in their hotel rooms.

Hotels typically offer free-to-guest (FTG) content on their room TVs, including local channels, cable programming, and interactive features. However, the hotel is responsible for covering the expenses of providing this content, which can quickly add up when dealing with numerous TVs.

By implementing an Android TV setup, hotels can offer their guests the desired content at a much lower price point.

Costs Hotels Invest in General TV Services

On average, hotels pay service providers around $10 to $15 monthly for FTG content per television set. That might seem cheap initially, but remember that your typical upper-upscale hotel operates more than 300 rooms.

Also, FTG content is a monthly-recurring expense. For hotel chains operating several thousand rooms in various locations, free TV content costs can easily reach more than a million dollars annually.

However, hotel owners seem to forget an important question: Do hotel guests even want the FTG content provided to them?

According to an ADB Global study, on the preferences of hotel guests, 57.4% of hotel guests (including 75% of millennials) preferred to connect their own smart devices to hotel TVs to stream their own content.

Streaming Services Over FTG

Forget about basic cable or even video-on-demand. Today’s generation of hotel guests already brings their personal entertainment devices wherever they go. Instead of FTG content, they prefer hotels to provide them with a few things.

First, they require a fast enough internet connection so that they can run their streaming services from their phones.

Second, they would like a means to connect their devices to the hotel TVs, whether via cable or wireless. This entails hotels providing smart TVs to run the apps and services they want in every room. Or, at the very least, traditional TVs should be able to accommodate set-top boxes to make them “smart.”

The best part of this preference is that guests already have their streaming accounts on their phones. Hotels won’t have to be on the hook for any subscription charges. It also means that guests can enjoy continuity by using their own devices and pick up content from their list of saved or favorite shows.

Why Investing in an Android TV Setup Is a Must

Hotel owners should consider equipping their rooms with smart TVs to give their guests what they want—the shows they love to binge on at home. Choosing an Android TV setup isn’t only the proper setup for the job; it’s the most common operating system in the world.

As of the 4th quarter of 2022, Android users account for 71.8% of the worldwide smartphone market. Having the hotel TV fleet ready to connect with Android-powered devices helps ensure seamless connections.

Finally, Android TV allows television units to take on other roles beyond mere hotel room entertainment. Setting them up in lobbies or common areas, Android TV can help transform units into interactive displays, digital billboards, or information kiosks.

Things Hotels Should Ensure When Selecting an Android TV Setup

Deploying Android TV-powered devices is a hefty investment, so it pays to invest in reliable device management software. This ensures that each device in the hotel fleet will receive proper maintenance and management. A suitable device manager can also safeguard device and user data when they are in the wrong hands.

Maintenance

Keeping the OS and firmware of smart TVs and set-top boxes constantly updated needs a remote-capable manager. It should have no problems performing low-level device management via remote access.

Instead of utilizing older, less secure, and cumbersome protocols, the ideal device manager uses secure and encrypted connections. Whether making software repairs on a single device or performing updates on an entire fleet, cloud-based connections are the way to go.

Management

Assigning access levels should always be based on a user’s specific requirements. Rather than providing general access to all users, the ideal device manager should be able to assign different user access levels across different users.

For example, hotel IT administrators can diagnose and repair all devices remotely without having access to user data or guest records.

Meanwhile, guests can launch pre-approved apps or use the TV as an external remote control unit without having the authority to tweak the operating system or install new apps. And the cherry on top is that marketing and sales executives can collect anonymous data and generate insights in a snap.

Security

When guests use the hotel smart TVs to log into their streaming accounts, they sometimes forget to log out before checkout rolls around.

A smart device manager can remotely perform security checks after the guest’s departure. This includes force logging all user accounts and wiping all user login information. That means new guests can start fresh and log in with their own accounts.

In extreme cases, hotel IT administrators can also perform security measures to protect the hotel’s smart TV and its data. The IT support team can remotely freeze or disable the device or even wipe all data in the event of unauthorized connections. For missing devices, geolocation services can help track their physical whereabouts.

Enhancing Guest Experience with Android TV

Hotels that provide guests with Android TV will not only save costs, but also to enhance overall guest experience and boost security. With a stable internet connection and the right management software, guests will feel more at home with Android TV-powered smart TVs and other devices.