Amazon Japan (Amazon) has begun offering ‘Alexa Smart Properties (ASP)’ as a service for businesses using the personal AI assistant Alexa. It has already been introduced in seven European and American countries, but this is the first time in Japan.
Through solution providers contracted with Amazon, corporate users can collectively introduce and manage the Alexa functions at their facilities. Also, customization to suit each facility are provided. In the tourism space, Amazon have started services for hotels.
“We will provide the convenience and comfort of Alexa, which is used in everyday life, as a business solution,” Bram Duchovnay, Director for Alexa Smart Properties, said. “In countries where it has been introduced, they already resulted in reducing the burden on staff, improving work efficiency and improving profits.”
Bram Duchovnay
Daisuke Sawada, head of Amazon Alexa business development in Japan, explained that Amazon primarily focus on four fields of ‘elderly care homes,’ ‘accommodation properties,’ 'condominiums/rental housing’ and ‘local governments,’ pointing out super-aging society, decreasing working population, expanding inbound demand and widespread use of smart homes as significances to commercialize ASP.
In each of the fields, solution providers provide ASP services, and TradFit, a AI speaker provider for hotels, became a ASP partner.
ASP is a service that performs settings and management using API, so it does not use the Alexa app. The account used is not an Alexa personal account, but an anonymized corporate account. Amazon emphasized that privacy and security are guaranteed because no personal information is provided to Amazon through companies or local governments. The administrator performs all device settings and management.
As customization is possible for each facility through a solution provider, Sawada said, “We can provide an experience tailored to each facility, and also contribute to improving operational efficiency and productivity.’'
Daisuke Sawada
Tokyu Hotel & Resorts introduces ASP in a new opening hotel
Tokyu Hotels & Resorts will introduce Echo Show 8 to 56 premium class rooms at the lifestyle hotel "SAPPORO STREAM HOTEL" that will open in Sapporo on January 16 2024.
“Our mission is to enhance guest experiences. Through ASP, we will deliver attractiveness of Hokkaido through hotel stay experiences, “ Yoshiaki Miyajima, Tokyu Hotels & Resorts Executive Officer, East Japan Area, said. The new hotel plans to provide the hotel's own recommended information and also work with the local communities to provide information on nearby sightseeing.
Yoshiaki Miyajima
In addition, they expect that they can increase sales in a property by providing a variety of service information in a property on ASP, and that ASP will help them reduce workloads of staff, such as the burden of dealing with guests during check-in and check-out.
In the beginning, ASP for hotels installs Japanese and English as defaults. Yoshiki Toda, TradFit Founder and CEO said, “We are considering making it multilingual as a customization option.” He added that it would be possible to introduce several thousand units by the end of the year, and about 10,000 units over the next year because they have already received many inquiries from a variety of accommodations.
