It’s not every single day that a big hotel chain makes Variety. But Hollywood’s Bible recognized Marriott International yesterday because Marriott’s going into the entertainment business.
Variety tells us how Marriott, which manages 18 brands including Ritz-Carlton and Springhill Suites, said it’s launching a studio so it can develop, produce and distribute entertainment. Expect to eventually see Marriott-produced “web series, short films, TV shows, music events and movies,” sort of like energy drink maker Red Bull does quite well to generate buzz.
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Marriott hopes its strategy will appeal to those of the Millennial generation.
“We’re saying we’re going to be the largest publishers of life style,” David Beebe, who is running the new studio, told Variety. “We’re going to be the Red Bull of this category. That’s where we want to get to.”
Red Bull for years has been building its reputation with younger, adventurous people through sports stunts, TV shows and its Red Bull glossy magazine.
“Everyone understands that all of us today are really media companies and content publishers,” Beebe told Variety. “It’s more about how do we do it?
Read the piece for more details. Interesting no? Marriott’s not alone:
- Starwood has for years led content marketing concepts among the hotel giants by doing things such as running its own fashion show during New York’s high-profile Fashion Week and, this year, sponsoring a tour with a quirky Paris-based cover band Nouvelle Vague and filming the musicians for distribution through its Le Meridien chain channels.
- Last week, Hyatt Hotels’ extended stay brand Hyatt House teamed with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia to introduce 58 local guides with suggestions on where to eat, shop and visit.
Readers: What do you think about this newfangled type of content. Do you trust your hotel company to be a publisher of things that interest you?
