The Grove Hotel, one of the UK’s most prestigious five star retreats, has teamed up with PPDS, the exclusive global provider of Philips Professional Displays, to revolutionise the in-room entertainment experience with the installation of 225 Google Cast and Netflix ready Philips MediaSuite TVs within its luxury guestrooms.
A short distance from Central London and synonymous with the rich and famous – with Tom Cruise, the Beckhams, Hugh Grant, and Kylie Minogue among some of the well-known guests in recent years – The Grove Hotel’s existing TV setup had become outdated, failing to address modern viewing preferences and falling short of guest expectations.
Part of an extensive upgrade and refurbishment project, The Grove Hotel – owned by the Ralph Trustees Ltd hospitality group – sought a TV solution to provide best-in-class picture quality together with seamless casting capabilities, embedded streaming and gaming apps, plus the ability to deliver personalised content on a room-by-room basis, enabling guests to take control of their own viewing experiences.
Following extensive global research, The Grove Hotel teamed up with PPDS, identifying the company’s unique Google Cast and Netflix ready Philips MediaSuite TV range as the only dedicated hospitality solution in the global market capable of meeting its high requirements and exacting standards.
Home comforts
Designed to offer a seamless transition between home and the hotel room, 189 Philips MediaSuite TVs – adopted by many of the world’s leading global hotel chains – were successfully installed in the guest rooms in The Grove Hotel’s contemporary West Wing.
Following the overwhelmingly positive feedback from guests, the project was quickly extended to include an additional 36 Philips MediaSuite TVs (43”-54”) in the 13 rooms and 12 suites in The Grove’s stunning Grade II listed Mansion House.
Philip Hallam, Group IT Technical Manager, Ralph Trustees Ltd, commented: “I have been continually reviewing the guest experience over the last 20 years or so. In particular, what I have been looking for is a product that can provide seamless streaming services and experiences to our guests. Five years ago, when I began this journey, I wasn’t able to find anything that matched our requirements or our ambitions. That was, until I found Philips MediaSuite.”
Like a fine wine
As the world’s first hospitality TV to feature Google Cast and Netflix ready functionality, launched back in 2019, the Philips MediaSuite TVs enable guests staying at The Grove Hotel to easily access and cast all their favourite content from their preferred accounts (including DAZN, Disney+, Prime, YouTube™, and more) directly onto the TV using their own personal connected device, whatever the operating system. With no additional wires or hardware, the risk of tampering or costly dongle thefts is eliminated, while all customer data – such as login credentials– is automatically cleared upon checkout.
Running on Android, and further extending the role and benefits of the in-room TV, guests at The Grove Hotel also have seamless access to a multitude of apps via the Google Play store, with games, news, travel, weather, and information on local attractions among those available through the TV.
In addition, as part of PPDS’ long-term commitment to its Android technology and supporting businesses with their sustainability ambitions, Philips MediaSuite TVs can also receive regular software updates, adding the latest apps, services, and features. This allows the TVs to improve with age, reducing unnecessary hardware upgrades (and electronic waste), while maintaining a consistent user experience in every room.
Tailored experiences
Bringing extensive branding, marketing and unique tailored opportunities to guests, all Philips MediaSuite TVs installed at The Grove Hotel are networked over a Tiger TMS hotel property management system (PMS) and use PPDS CMND content management platform.
The user interface on all Philips MediaSuite TVs has also been customised to feature The Grove Hotel’s iconic colours and branding, together with their design and layout.
Taking things further, each Philips MediaSuite TV can now be configured to meet the needs and requirements of each guest. This includes but is far from limited to, supporting a wide range of different or preferred languages, adding on-screen messages (such as a personalised welcome or congratulations on special occasions), and even adding specific services, such as games and channels suitable for guests with children, or health-related apps, such as Peloton and iFit.
Externally, all Philips MediaSuite TVs at The Grove Hotel have had their bezels custom-finished in a stunning pewter colour, completing the look and adding a final layer of exclusivity.
Kendra Ingram, Professional TV Business Manager at PPDS added: “The feature we’re finding both hoteliers and their guests enjoy around the world on Philips MediaSuite is Google Cast. It’s a fully certified Google product, allowing guests to come in with their phones and cast the content they really want to watch. It’s fast and incredibly simple. And the benefits of Philips MediaSuite extend much further, with an amazing choice of entertainment options to cover almost every preference a guest might have. We’re incredibly proud to have played such an important role in the experience at The Grove – one of the UK’s most luxurious hotels.”
Philip added: “In the world we live in today, the majority of the content our guests are looking for is actually from their own streaming services. Philips MediaSuite was the standout choice for our guest rooms.”
Project at a glance
- Client: The Grove Hotel
- Location: Chandlers Cross, Hertfordshire, UK
- Project: Remastering the West Wing for home-from-home comfort at The Grove
- Partners: Peter Tyson
- Products: 43” and 55” Philips MediaSuite TVs
*Apps can be added, made accessible or restricted at the hotel’s discretion
