Since its launch in 2000, this event, created on the initiative of the Nice Côte d’Azur Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Telecom Valley Association, has continuously promoted the most innovative technological projects in the tourism industry worldwide.
This 7th edition, marked by a strong international presence, notably from Canada and South America, will bring together many globally recognized experts in the fields of technology and tourism professions.
As every year, the highlight of Tourism@ 2006 is the International Competition launched for creators of innovative ICT solutions intended for tourism professions. Out of the 90 entries received, more than 50 applications were selected, a third of which came from foreign countries.
These applications were reviewed in mid-November to select the 12 finalists who will be judged by a prestigious jury, chaired by Mr. Henri Chapdelaine, representing the Quebec Ministry of Tourism. Two prizes, each worth 10,000 euros, will be awarded to the winners for the best technological innovations and new usages related to tourism during the closing dinner on December 5.
Alternating between plenary sessions, workshops, a research space “Ph.D. students and companies,” and animation spaces “workshops and media,” Tourism@ 2006 is more than ever the showcase of tomorrow’s tourism. Visitors can thus, in a single day and place, follow international e-tourism news, especially projects in the mobility sector, through:
A conference space and participate throughout the day in:
– Four plenary sessions, led by recognized experts, including Yann Le Fichant, CEO of Voxinzebox, Jacques Spindler, Director of IAE Nice, Fatma Naïdj Travel Industry Manager at Google, François Choquette, General Manager France of Air Canada, Daniele Mancini, Global e-business director of Costa Crociere, on themes: “Success Stories, Research & Innovation, The State of the Art in Technologies and New Trends in the Global Tourism Market.”
– Thematic workshops led by companies like Antidot, Ogone, and Haréva, which will present their solutions for the tourism industry.
– “Performance meeting” led by the e-Novalis association aimed at providing concrete answers to the individual IT challenges faced by hotel professionals.
A “showroom” space divided into 3 sectors will also allow discovering:
– The scientific works and projects of Ph.D. students, in the form of “posters.”
– The latest technological innovations in Digital Media, RFID, traceability, security, CRM, e-commerce, Mobile Video, UMTS services, geolocation, virtual tours, etc., developed and presented continuously by the event’s partners and sponsors: Amadeus, France Telecom, IBM, Coframi on their respective stands.
– The unprecedented applications of e-tourism worldwide presented by the exhibitors and nominees of the Tourism@ Awards 2006 competition.
A media space:
– A permanent media pool (press, radio, TV) will be provided throughout the day by the Nice Première team, which will broadcast the testimonies collected live on the web.
– Press conferences organized by the event’s partners and sponsors at the end of the afternoon.
Detailed program of the event
9:30 AM: Conference 1 “Success stories of Tourism@” led by Yann le Fichant, CEO of VOXINZEBOX
– “Impact of online yield management on the ski resort of Valberg in 2005/2006 & prospects for 2007” by Christian Mars, SEM les Portes du Mercantour
– “Presentation of the Digital GPS Guide CAMINEO” by Xavier ZIMMERMANN, Sales Director of CAMINEO and Pierre COMMENVILLE, Mercantour National Park
10:45 AM: Coffee Break
11:00 AM: Conference 2 “Research & Innovation” led by Jacques Spindler, Professor in Management Sciences, University of Nice-Sophia-Antipolis, Director of IAE Nice, “French research in tourism: state of emergency” by Jacques Spindler
– “Innovation in tourism: balance and perspectives” by François Xavier DECELLE, Lecturer at IREST (France): presentation of sources and conditions of innovation for optimal dynamics.
– “Tourism and the impact of new technologies” by Bénédicte Aldebert, a Ph.D. candidate at CNRS: quantitative and qualitative analysis conducted with tourism companies in Alpes-Maritimes (thesis).
12:30-2:00 PM: Visit to the stands & exhibition of works by Ph.D. students and researchers
12:45 PM: Aperitif offered by Mercantour National Park & speech by Gaston FRANCO, Vice-President of the Alpes Maritimes General Council. Free lunch break (snack bar on site)
2:00 PM: Opening of conference sessions by Michel Chevillon, president of the Hotelier’s Union and elected to Tourism -CCI Nice Côte d’Azur- with preamble testimonies from two international groups
– “The Vision of e-tourism” presented by Fatma Naïdj Travel Industry Manager, GOOGLE: Added value of Google’s search engine for the tourism industry
“Web technology at the heart of Air Canada’s new economic model” by François CHOQUETTE, General Manager France of Air Canada
2:40 PM: Conference 3 “State of the Art of Technologies” led by Laurent Garcia, Director Europe Grand Circle Tour
– “Multimedia & Tourism: Digital Media at the service of TV and mobile telephony” by Rob Van Den Dam, IBM institute for business value: Presentation of Mobile TV technology offering new interactive services on mobile for consumers and tourism professionals: video on demand, e-commerce solutions, entertainment, etc.
– “Mobile e-services: real-time information and heritage valorization” by François IZARN, Tourism Director of France Telecom: Presentation of mobility solutions developed by France Telecom/Orange: online tourist content on mobile devices, multimedia solutions via the Clisson demonstrator. “https://clisson.mobivisit.com”
– “Geolocation & Associated Services” by Frédéric HOUGARD- Sales Director / Online services department of ViaMichelin: presentation of evolving GPS technology (real-time updating of online services – traffic and tourist info, parking availability, hotels, etc.)
3:55 PM: Coffee break
4:15 PM Keynote “European EUREKA Program for Innovative Enterprises” by Stéphanie Bartels, Head of the strategic initiatives department within the EUREKA program (EU-Brussels)
4:30 PM: Conference 4 “The latest international trends in online tourism” led by Guy RAFFOUR, CEO of Raffour Interactif with testimonies from:
Henri CHAPDELAINE – Director of customer services within the Quebec Ministry of Tourism who will discuss the results of the commercial platform “Bonjourquebec.com”
Daniele MANCINI- Global e-business director, Costa Crociere
Guy RAFFOUR, the new trends in the B2B and B2C e-tourism market
5:30 PM: summary of conferences by Jacques Gros, Vice-President of Telecom Valley and Director of the Center for Studies and Research – IBM La Gaude –
6 PM – 7 PM: Closing cocktail & exhibition visit
7 PM – 8:15 PM: Press point / Availability of partners and sponsors for interviews presentations of m-tourism® and Mercantour Park projects
Starting at 8:30 PM: Closing dinner and presentation of the nominees. Presentation of the Tourism@ Awards 2006 prizes at the end of the dinner.
In parallel, from 10 AM to 6 PM: ATELIERS TOURISM@ 2006
10:00 – 10:45 AM Workshop 1: “Performance Meeting special hotel industry” (part 1) – led by the e-Novalis Association –
Case study “Web Mastering” and solutions provided by 10 expert members of e-Novalis on the issue of the Web in the legal, multimedia, Web Design sectors, secure online payment, open source, biometrics, e-marketing
10:45 AM: Coffee Break
11:00- 12:00 AM Workshop 2: “Presentations of e-tourism products” led by Marc HENRY, project manager at Amadeus
OGONE (Belgium) leader in online payment solutions
ANTIDOT/MONDECA: creators of Capelink solution for receptive e-tourism
HAREVA: mobile applications; embedded traceability solutions
4:30 PM – 6:00 PM – Workshop 3: “Performance Meeting special hotel industry” (part 2) – led by the e-Novalis Association –
Addressing the issues discussed in the first part of this workshop.
