Successful Meetings - January 2008 - 10

01.08 & NEWS ANALYSIS > Association Two Travel Industry Lobbyist Groups Meld Their Efforts Bolstering their ability to wage battles on the industry’s behalf, the Travel Industry Association (TIA) and the Travel Business Roundtable (TBR) have announced that they will become a single organization in 2009. Meanwhile, the two also will, in effect, take over the Discover America Partnership (DAP), which is now slated to fold at the end of this year. Next year, as TIA works to merge with TBR into one—as yet unnamed entity—the association will absorb much of the DAP staff. Bringing the two large travel industry champions together will greatly enhance their resources while also giving them a more significant presence, says Chuck Merin, president of TBR. “Challenges to the industry continue to grow, and while we both bring resources to the table, we wanted a bigger and better government relations structure. Also, we’re sending a signal that this is a new day for the industry.” Adds Roger Dow, TIA president and CEO, “Building on the momentum created by DAP— which focused on improving overseas inbound travel—and creating a stronger government affairs capability will allow us to better reach politicians, government affairs officials at corporations, and the public.” Dow, and his brethren, are looking to gain support from these various groups on a host of issues, including reform of the Transportation Security Administration. “While the organization is doing the best it can, we go through a lot that makes no sense,” says Dow. “We need to show how much productivity is being lost by people standing in lines for hours; and question the logic of searching a child because he has the same name as someone on a watch list. I doubt anyone can give you a list of 20 terrorists who’ve been caught because they took their shoes off.” The tourism officials are also focused on other entry issues, airport and technology upgrades, and the passage of the Travel Promotion Act of 2007. The legislation would mandate the creation of both an office of travel promotion for the U.S. (something that many other countries have) and a corporation for travel promotion. It would also create a funding mechanism for these efforts. “Coming together will allow us to run public advocacy programs, just as every other industry JANUARY 2008 SUCCESSFUL MEETINGS Inside > RESEARCH Leveraging meetings spend: not there yet PAGE 12 > SUPPLIERS Union campaign sweeps major cities PAGE 14 >ON THE RECORD AMEX’s Christine Wilkes predicts higher hotel rates in 2008 PAGE 18 PHOTO: UPI / NASA / LANDOV 10 mimegasite.com

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - January 2008

Successful Meetings - January 2008
Contents
Editor's Note
Associations
Research
Events
Suppliers
Associations
On the Record
Associations
Suppliers
Planner Spotlight
Websites of the Month
Management Matters
Meeting the Law
Personal Success
Mouth for Sale
Food & Beverage
Professional Development
On Site
Pre-Event
Tools of the Trade
Veggie Power
Tennis, Anyone?
Seeing is Believing
The Wild Green Yonder
Game On
Places & Spaces
Galveston & Texas Beaches
Greater Seattle
Singapore
Gurus

Successful Meetings - January 2008