Meeting News - March 23, 2009 - (Page 1)

Perspectives C’mon, Get Meeting Here at MeetingNews, we’re on the road with our colleagues at Successful Meetings. In fact, as this issue hits your desk, we’re in Newport Beach, CA, at the Green Travel Roundtable; in Las Vegas, getting ready for the Las Vegas Leadership Summit; and in our own hometown of New York City, at the Successful Meetings University International Marketplace. So much meetings activity reminds me of eight years ago, when I was at Successful Meetings. Just one month after the shock of 9/11, every staff member was back in the air. It was a random assortment of destinations—Columbus, OH; Nashville; Chile; and Brazil, to name a few—but the point is that we were supporting the industry that we both loved and kept informed. Now, there’s this “meetings” crisis. Thankfully, it is not terrorism, but at least some of the cuffs and Terri Hardin, blows of outrageous fortune we currently are expeEditor-In-Chief riencing are a direct result of that awful day. Should we give up? Is everything we do pointless, or mean, compared with the disasters facing us? It might seem that way—if we were alone. But we’re not; humans are social animals, and we need strength from community. On the cover, the leaders of Las Vegas weigh in on the issues affecting their community, while on page 10, correspondent Gretchen Kelly reports on how new trends in air travel are affecting international routes. MeetingNews Exclusive Research, on page 12, reveals the extent to which planners are laden with personal technology, and Green Beat (p. 11) profiles Oracle’s Jodi Morrison, one of three winners of the Greenest Planner Awards, sponsored by MeetingNews and Successful Meetings. Remember, any one meeting may or may not be necessary, but as a whole, meetings are vital. Don’t be afraid to get meeting. H Editorial M a r c h 2 3 , 2 0 0 9 Vo l u m e 3 3 , N u m b e r 5 Corporate/Sales Nella Veldran, Vice President Travel Group Phone: (646) 654-7325 Editor-In-Chief, Terri Hardin (646) 654-7364; terri.hardin@nielsen.com Executive Editor, Rayna Katz (646) 654-4421; rayna.katz@nielsen.com Managing Editor, William Ng (646) 654-4451; william.ng@nielsen.com Research Director, Nancy Lazarus (646) 654-7272; nancy.lazarus@nielsen.com Editorial Fax: (646) 654-4428 Editorial Address: 770 Broadway, New York, NY 10003-9595 Southeast/Mid-Atlantic/Ohio Larry Mischik, Ad Director/Account Manager 3054 Four Oaks Drive, Atlanta, GA 30360 Phone: (770) 604-9641 NY/NJ/New England/Bermuda/Caribbean Diane DiMaggio, International Advertising Director 770 Broadway, NY, NY 10003; Phone: (646) 654-7332 Contributing Editors Robert Carey, Gretchen Kelly Matt Alderton, Michael Goldstein Phillip Hennessey, Heidi Waldrop Bay Florida/Cruise Arthur Hyman, Associate Publisher/Account Manager 1267 Via Fiume, Boynton Beach, FL 33436 Phone: (561) 736-5374 Art Art Director, Michael J. Strong (646) 654-4424; michael.strong@nielsen.com Midwest/Texas/Louisiana Patrice Carman, Account Manager 200 West Jackson Blvd., 27th floor, Chicago, IL 60606 Phone: (312) 583-5522 Marketing Sr. Marketing Manager, Jennifer Pepper Stam (646) 654-7263; jennifer.pepperstam@nielsen.com CA/HI/Colorado/Arizona/Nevada/NM Sharon Freeark, Account Manager 2950 31st Street, Suite 100, Santa Monica, CA 904053037; Phone: (626) 578-0700; Fax: (626) 578-0720 Production Production Manager, Adam Schaffer (646) 654-7295; Fax (646) 654-7318 adam.schaffer@nielsen.com Subscription Information: (847) 763-9050 Subscription Fax: (847) 763-9037 Single Copy Sales: (847) 763-9050 Digital Sales Jared Smith, National Account Manager 770 Broadway, NY, NY 10003; Phone: (646) 654-5520 Custom Media Editorial Director, Marilyn Moore (305) 884-0295 Executive Editor, Alison Golub Executive Editor (Performance), Karen Gines Associate Editor, Sarah Veit Creative Director, Denniston Brown Art Director, Michelle Tropiano Associate Art Director, Jonathan Chan Associate Art Director, Tessa Sestina International International Advertising Director Diane DiMaggio, International Advertising Director 770 Broadway, NY, NY 10003; Phone: (646) 654-7332 email: Diane.Dimaggio@nielsen.com CANADA: Publicitas APR; Cyndy Fleming. 468 Queen St E,Toronto, ON M5A 1T7, Phone: (416) 363-1388; Email: Cyndy.Fleming@Publicitas.com Western office: Publicitas APR; Rosalind Genge, 1281 W.Georgia St, 502, Vancouver, BC V6E 3J7; Phone: (604) 688-5914; Fax: (604) 689-0703; Email: Rosalind.Genge@Publicitas.com MEXICO & LATIN AMERICA: Veronica Castro; CASS Media; Corina No 31-B; Col. Del Carmen Coyoacan, Mexico, DF 04100, Mexico; Phone: 52-55/5605-1757 Email: veronicacastro@cassmedia.com ASIA/PACIFIC: Singapore Lavendar Tan, Al Media, 733 Bukit timah Road #03-05, Singapore 269748; Phone: (65) 6469-9321; Fax: (65)6469-8028; email: lavtan@signet. com.sg Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines Annie Blanchard & Assoc, Unit 9A #8 Wack Wack Rd Condominium, Wack Wack Rd, Greenhills E, Mandaluyong City 1550, Metro Manila, Philippines; Phone: (632) 646-2497; Fax: (632) 647-1853; Email: abaltd@skyinet.net; Korea Mr. Jung-Won Suh, Sinsegi Media Inc.,4-13, Yoick-dong, Kandungpo-gu, Seoul, Korea 150-890; Phone: +82 2 3275 5969; Fax: +82 2 785 8225; Email:sinsegi-2@sinsegimemdia.info; Japan Hiroko Kujime, Pacific Business, Inc, Matsuda Building, 2-4-6 Nihonbashi Kayabacho Chuo-ku, Tokyo 103-0025; Phone 81-3-3661-6138; Fax: 81-3-36616139; email: Kujime-pbi@gol.com Taiwan Ye Chang & Paula Liu, Epoch Ltd, 3F-4, 189 eelung Road, Section 2, Taipei 11054, Taiwan; Phone: +886-223-779108; Email: epoch.paula@msa.hinet.net, epoch.ye@msa.hinet.net EUROPE: Spain Luis Andrade, Luis Andrade Publicidad Internacional, Plaza Descubridor Diego de Ordas 1, Madrid, 28003, Spain, Phone: +34-91+441+6266, Fax: +3491-441-6549, Email: LAndrade@luisandrade.com Portugal Paulo Andrade, Ilimitada Media International; Av. Eng. Duarte Pacheco; Amoreiras Torre 2, Piso 5 Sala 1, Lisbon, 1070102, Portugal; Phone: 351-21-385-3598/45; Fax: 351-21388-3283, email: PAndrade@ilimitadapub.com Information Marketing Associate Director, Audience Marketing, Tracey Dwyer (646) 654-5879; tracey.dwyer@nielsen.com Reprints The YGS Group Barb Karmilowicz (800) 290-5460 x106 MN@theYGSgroup.com List Rentals For postal mailings: Julius Single, (845) 731-2731 For emailings: Nicole Guarascio, (845) 731-3828 Group President Sabrina Crow Business Manager Leslie Musick terri.hardin@nielsen.com Correction: The individual, Howell Thurston III, quoted in “The Industry Fights Back,” (March 9, 2009, page 48), is the product of a practical joke and does not exist. MeetingNews regrets the error. President, Greg Farrar Senior Vice President, Human Resources: Michael Alicea Senior Vice President, Finance: Sloane Googin Senior Vice President, Marketing: Mark Hosbein Senior Vice President, Media & Entertainment: Gerry Byrne Senior Vice President, Brand Media, Corporate Development: ADDITIONAL DEPARTMENTS IN THIS ISSUE ® ® ® ® ® ® ® What’s Up @ MeetingNews.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 People Making News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Insider Report: Conference Centers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 Destination Insider: Mississippi Gulf Coast . . . . . . . . . .28 Destination Insider: Cleveland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 Ad Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48 Live from the Forum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49 Sabrina Crow Senior Vice President, Retail: David Loechner Senior Vice President, Online: Linda McCutcheon Senior Vice President, Building & Design: Joe Randall Senior Vice President, Central Services: Mary Kay Sustek Vice President, Licensing: Howard Appelbaum Vice President, Manufacturing & Distribution: Jennifer Grego Vice President, Audience Marketing: Joanne Wheatley www.meetingnews.com March 23, 2009 MeetingNews 1 http://www.meetingnews.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Meeting News - March 23, 2009

Meeting News - March 23, 2009
Contents
What’s Up @ MeetingNews.com
Meetings Mean Business
As 'Meeting Matter' Marriott Unveils Promo
Columbus, OH, Addresses Convention Hotel Issues
People Making News
Orlando Strives for Cost Transparency
Is Biz-Class Air Travel Dead?
Greenest Planner Awards
Mid America
Insider Report: Conference Centers
Destination Insider: Mississippi Gulf Coast
Las Vegas
Destination Insider: Cleveland
Ad Index
Live from the Forum

Meeting News - March 23, 2009