TUNE HOTELS, NIKON CO-ORGANISE NATIONWIDE PHOTO CONTEST

Melbourne getaway plus Nikon D5200 await grand prize winner

KUALA LUMPUR, 31 October 2013 – Calling all shutterbugs! International value hotel brand Tune Hotels and Nikon (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd are jointly organising a four-month long nationwide photography contest that is open to all Nikon camera users in Malaysia.

Divided into four categories – portrait, architectural, cultural and nature – the Tune Hotels + Nikon Photography Contest is aptly themed ‘I Am Malaysia’ and seeks to unearth the many hidden and forgotten sides of Malaysia.

Tune Hotels Group CEO Mark Lankester says: “With the rise in the popularity of photos and social media, the Tune Hotels + Nikon Photography Contest is a great platform for all amateur and professional photographers out there to give their best shots, be it of the people of different backgrounds, structures of a weathered building or traditions that have been passed on from one generation to another.”

“With the Visit Malaysia Year 2014 dawning upon us, the photography contest will offer tourists and visitors an extensive glimpse of what the country has to offer. Just two weeks into the contest there is already a sizeable collection of fantastic photos on the competition website,” he added.

“As a player in the tourism industry, Tune Hotels feels that this collaboration with Nikon will go a long way in helping promote us as a fun and cool brand amongst Malaysians and tourists alike. We are very grateful to Nikon for the wonderful opportunity to work together,” said Mark.

Tune Hotels General Manager for Hotel Operations Kishore Suppiah (left) and Nikon (Malaysia) Assistant Marketing Manager Yeo Su Kuan.

There will be four contest periods of a month long each. The first term is currently running from 14 October until 13 November 2013, while the fourth and final term will be from 14 January 2014 up to 13 February 2014, the final closing date.

At the end of the contest period, all shortlisted images will be judged by an appointed panel of judges that will constitute 60 per cent of the overall score while the remaining 40 per cent will come from public votes via the contest website.

For each contest term, contestants may submit up to five images for each category together with a pre-requisite photo featuring any Tune Hotel in Malaysia. Contestant with the best image in each category will be selected as the Category Prize Winner and receive a Nikon D3200 with an 18-55 kit lens and a three-day, two-night return trip to Bali courtesy of Tune Hotels.

Meanwhile, the photographer with the most number of shortlisted images across the four categories will walk away with the Grand Prize consisting of a Nikon D5200 with an 18-105 kit lens and a fully-paid four-day, three-night holiday for two to Melbourne courtesy of Tune Hotels.

Public voters will also stand a chance to win a Nikon S6200 and a two-day, one-night Tune Hotels stay voucher if the photo they voted for emerged a Category Winner.

All winning photographs will be featured in the Digital Camera magazine, Digital SLR Photography magazine, Dunia Kamera magazine and Aperture magazine.

More information on the Tune Hotels + Nikon Photography Contest, terms and conditions are available from www.photocontest.tunehotels.com or by visiting the Nikon Club kiosk at the I Am Precious Moment: Nikon Show 2013 being held at the MidValley Megamall until this Sunday 3 November 2013.

There are 11 Tune Hotels in operation in Malaysia at present, strategically located in Kuala Lumpur, KLIA-LCCT, Kota Damansara, Penang, Johor Bahru, Ipoh, Kulim, Kota Bharu, Kuching, Bintulu and Kota Kinabalu.

For real-time updates and promotion alerts by Tune Hotels, guests can stay connected with Tune Hotels via Facebook at www.facebook.com/tunehotels and on Twitter via www.twitter.com/tunehotels.  For booking and further information, visit www.tunehotels.com.

A TREAT FOR F1 FANS AT TUNE HOTEL DANGA BAY

Other Tune Hotels in Malaysia, Bali on offer, too

KUALA LUMPUR, 12 September 2011 – Formula 1 fans, check this out! If you’re heading to the SingTel Singapore Grand Prix on the 23-25 September and looking for affordable accommodation, Tune Hotel Danga Bay in Johor Bahru is your best bet.

From as low as RM28 per night, guests can enjoy the convenience of putting up at Tune Hotel Danga Bay while celebrating the F1 race at the Marina Bay Street Circuit. The hotel is only about 1 hour away from the Lion City and offers 6 daily shuttle transfers to and from Marina Bay.

Other Tune Hotels participating in this special promotion are Downtown Kuala Lumpur, Kota Damansara, Downtown Penang, 1Borneo Kota Kinabalu, Waterfront Kuching, Kota Bharu and Kulim with room offers from RM40 per night, while Tune Hotels in Bali, Indonesia located at Kuta and Legian, are going from Rp120.000 per room night.

All the above rates are available on a first come, first served basis, for stay period from 19 September to 30 November 2011. The promotion is offered exclusively online at www.tunehotels.com and booking can be made from tomorrow (Tuesday 13 September) up to Friday 18 September.

Tune Hotels Group CEO, Mark Lankester says: “We are looking forward to celebrating the Singapore GP with our guests. This is a perfect time to visit Singapore and Tune Hotel Danga Bay is a great option for affordable and convenient stay within the vicinity. The Team Lotus F1 merchandise on offer will give our guests even more reason to celebrate.”

Tune Hotels is part of Tune Group, the official partner of the Team Lotus F1 team.

To rev up the F1 celebration, guests who book a minimum of 2 nights’ stay at Tune Hotel Danga Bay during the promotional period will stand a chance to win exclusive Team Lotus F1 merchandise from Tune Hotels. All they need to do is post comments on why they love Tune Hotel Danga Bay together with their booking reference number on Tune Hotels Facebook page at www.facebook.com/tunehotels. Five best commenters will receive a Team Lotus shirt each while 25 Team Lotus T-shirts will go to consolation winners.

“As the promotion is running up to November, and extended to most of our Malaysian hotels as well as those in Bali, guests can also plan for an early school and year-end holiday with their family. We are very proud to have hosted over 2 million guests at our Tune Hotels, who have consistently rated us highly and provided positive feedback,” he adds.

Tune Hotels, the pioneering value hotel chain under Tune Group, will be adding another property to its portfolio with the opening of its latest hotel in Kulim, Kedah later this month. It is going to be the 10th Tune Hotel to open in Malaysia, bringing its worldwide network to 13 hotels including 2 in Bali, Indonesia and one in London, England.

Its popularity and high service quality have earned Tune Hotels numerous accolades. It was recently named among Top 20 Most Innovative Brands in Indonesia by MIX magazine, the country’s leading marketing communication publication. Standing at number nine, Tune Hotels was the only hotel brand on the list. Tune Hotel Westminster in London was awarded a Certificate of Excellence by the world’s largest travel website TripAdvisor, as a “result of consistently great feedback” from the hotel guests while the guide portal About.com ranked Tune Hotel Westminster as No 1 among Top 10 Cheap London Hotels.

Since the removal of its admin fee in January, guests at Tune Hotels can save 20% if they purchase the Comfort Package that includes towels, toiletries and air condition credits online. They can enjoy even more savings of 30% with Plus Package that bundles television and in-room wifi at selected hotels.

For real-time updates and promotion updates, guests can stay connected with Tune Hotels via Facebook at www.facebook.com/tunehotels and on Twitter via www.twitter.com/tunehotels.

For booking and further information, visit www.tunehotels.com.

GE signs Memorandum of Collaboration with Tune Hotels for sustainable development globally

General Electric (GE), a global innovative, high-tech infrastructure and financial services company, and Tune Hotels, the pioneering value hotel brand, sign an agreement to explore collaborative opportunities

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA – September 9, 2011 – General Electric International Inc (NYSE:GE) and Tune Hotels, the pioneering value hotel chain under Tune Group, signed a Memorandum of Collaboration (MoC) today to explore opportunities on sustainable developments. The MoC was signed by Chief Executive Officer of GE ASEAN, Stuart Dean, and Group Chief Executive Officer of Tune Hotels, Mark Lankester, to identify opportunities for collaboration with the aim of achieving cost savings and energy efficiency in Tune Hotel’s operations globally.
From left: Chief Executive Officer for Asia, GE Lighting - Mohamed Butt; Chief Executive Officer of GE ASEAN - Stuart Dean; Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water Dato’ Sri Peter Chin; Group Chief Executive Officer of Tune Hotels - Mark Lankester; and Chief Financial Officer of Tune Hotels - Mitul Lakhani.

The signing was witnessed by Dato’ Sri Peter Chin, Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water, with Mohamed Butt, Chief Executive Officer for Asia, GE Lighting and Mitul Lakhani, Chief Financial Officer of Tune Hotels also present at the ceremony.

Stuart Dean expressed GE’s commitment to working with local partners to develop environmentally driven business strategies that will help drive Malaysia towards becoming a high income nation.

“Our partnership with Tune Hotels demonstrates GE's commitment to accelerate the development and deployment of innovative technologies through open collaboration. Using our ecomagination & GE Sustainable Cities approach, we have been building sustainable developments certified by various Green Building Certification programs in multiple jurisdictions across the globe, powered by our new technologies and solutions. We hope to contribute and share our expertise across the spectrum of products and services we offer and work with Tune Hotels to achieve the desired impact for its operations,” he said.

“This collaboration is a testament of GE’s commitment to support the Malaysian Government’s aspirations to promote efficient green solutions,” he added.

Under the agreement, GE’s role will be to assist Tune Hotels in reviewing, planning and designing properties by contributing its knowledge and expertise in the areas of low-cost operational modeling, sustainable development, cost-saving infrastructure, energy efficiency and green technology. The collaboration will also help Tune Hotels work towards achieving relevant eco-building certifications such as with Malaysia’s Green Building Index, the Singapore Building and Construction Authority’s BCA Green Mark and the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system.

The agreement will also explore the development and implementation of sustainable energy solutions within Tune Hotels’ operations and allow them to leverage GE’s ecomagination™ line of products and cutting-edge technologies in creating environmental solutions for both their existing and upcoming projects.

GE has previously announced collaborative agreements with local partners in Malaysia including top public and private companies from a diverse range of industries. Some more notable partnerships include NAZA, PETRONAS, TNB, Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia, and Sapura.

Tune Hotels’ Group CEO Mark Lankester said: “Tune Hotels has been in consistent pursuit of green technologies and eco-friendly approaches to ramp up our service and business efficiency. Having pioneered the pay-as-you-use concept that has gained huge popularity amongst travellers and holidaymakers from across the world, we are proud to be working with GE on exploring environmentally driven business strategies. This will not only benefit our business but more importantly our guests who can look forward to enjoying further savings and convenience.”

Tune Hotels, which is part of the lifestyle conglomerate Tune Group currently has 13 hotels in its global network. Its 10th Malaysian hotel is opening in Kulim, Kedah later this month, on top of 2 hotels in Bali, Indonesia and one in London, England. More Tune Hotels are scheduled for opening in Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, the UK, India and Malaysia from Q4 this year through 2012.

Known for innovation and technological exploit, Tune Hotels was recently named among Top 20 Most Innovative Brands in Indonesia by MIX magazine, the country’s leading marketing communication publication. Standing at number nine, Tune Hotels was the only hotel brand on the list. Tune Hotel Westminster in London was awarded a Certificate of Excellence by the world’s largest travel website TripAdvisor, as a “result of consistently great feedback” from the hotel guests while the guide portal About.com ranked Tune Hotel Westminster at No 1 among Top 10 Cheap London Hotels.

Tune Hotels is part of the lifestyle business conglomerate Tune Group that was founded by Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and Dato’ Kamarudin Meranun. Tune Group seeks to innovate and revolutionize the way services are made available and has employed efficient web-based technologies to reach and engage its customers, presenting a unique lifestyle offering ranging from value hotel stays, personal finance solutions and affordable prepaid mobile services. Tune Group of Companies are Tune Air, Tune Hotels, Tune Money, Tune Talk, Tune Box, Tune Studios, Tune Tones, Team Lotus, ASEAN Basketball League, Queens Park Rangers Football Club (QPR) and Kuala Lumpur Education City (owner of Epsom College in Malaysia).