Tyrolean tourism giant thanks to a window to the world

From weather cameras on TV to marketing, advertising and logistics – Feratel conquered the market with completely new concepts.

Weather cameras that brought live images from tourist regions into the living rooms of Austrians – that was the start of the Tyrolean company Feratel in 1987. Over the years, hundreds of weather cams were added – also through simpler and more modern technology – and later various subsidiaries followed, covering many areas from advertising space in tourism regions, marketing tools to logistics such as booking and guest registration systems. Today, Feratel has a unique market position. Mastermind and CEO Markus Schröcksnadel lets us look behind the scenes of the tourism giant.

Let’s first talk about “Window to the World”, the Feratel cameras. How many are there now and are there plans for further international expansion into new countries?
Markus Schröcksnadel: Markus Schröcksnadel: We currently have 1,038 cameras in 14 countries at 551 locations. There are fewer locations than cameras, as there may be two or three cameras in some places. We have very distant cameras, such as in Greenland, which I like to look at myself – it’s always quite exciting to see how long the pack ice lasts there. Our focus is on Germany, Austria and Switzerland, but we also work in Italy, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, a bit of Spain and Turkey. That’s because our origin is winter tourism and that’s where we started. The cameras are very popular in summer and winter. This also applies to the city destinations, such as the camera at the Hotel Adlon in Berlin with a view of the Brandenburg Gate or the camera next to the Vatican with a view of St. Peter’s Square. The camera next to the Vatican has the most hits of all and is extremely popular. The pictures are not only distributed via television. That was the classic way, because when we started there was nothing else and it was unimaginable to bring live moving images to a phone via a phone line. Now both online and mobile are very strong, and in February 2023 we had the most hits on the camera network ever, with more than a billion. Then there are the viewers on television, where we are very strongly represented in public broadcasting. But private stations also take these pictures. This has been our formula for success since 1987 and it is always being adapted to the technological possibilities. The business is growing and is extremely popular among users.

Are streaming platforms or private cameras, which anyone can stream with their mobile phone today, a competition?
Schröcksnadel: On the contrary, it’s even better for us, because everyone is used to watching moving images on their mobile phone or smart TV. It has become quite normal. It used to be a sensation, because “Window to the World” was a tourism region’s shop window to the world in real time. That was actually the first virtual shop window and has become so much more. Our cameras have thanks to a window to the world From weather cameras on TV to marketing, advertising and logistics –very specific positions at very specific points of interest. The user- generated photos have a completely different background. Therefore, it’s not competition, it’s fertilisation.

Who selects the camera locations, who sets up and services them?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: The cameras used to be maintenance- intensive; they were large devices connected by radio link and weighed 60 kilos with their swivel heads. Today, however, the cameras are relatively small and light and can usually be installed by the operator himself. When they are serviced today, the whole camera is replaced, which is easier. The connection works either via WiFi or directly via a fibre optic cable. When it comes to selecting locations, both sides are active, either the points of interest or we, if we think the location is interesting. The business case is that we provide a technical service, namely the camera network, and guarantee distribution via the most diverse channels. However, there is no guarantee of coverage, as it is not an advertisement, but everyone who distributes the images is completely free to use them. Our media partners want to use these images and are asking for more and more – obviously these images bring the media additional traffic. A weather portal lives from the fact that you not only see a virtual map, but also a live image. And that’s the interesting thing about our business model.

Who pays for all this?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: The network is paid for by the person who sets up the camera. Our customer buys a plug-and-play system from us and pays us an annual network fee for the distribution. The media company pays for the broadcast insofar as it has to provide the technology to broadcast the images.

Your live cameras are probably a point of attraction for all those who like to show off in front of a camera?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: In the past you saw a nudist walking through the picture or people holding up banners. In the early days we had a hacker who copied our picture on Czech television and when he panned the picture there was a mushroom cloud. There was a huge commotion.

You link the live pictures with editorial information and links to booking possibilities. How demanding is the linking and networking, or do you use AI for this?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: The editorial system is based on human manual work. We already use AI, and we also have a stake in the company Onlim, which deals exclusively with AI. There are various projects with chatbots that are already running. The issue of bed availability or booking possibilities comes from our second business area, with which we supply booking, reservation and which a lot of information flows. Of course, the more complex the systems become, the more they will be controlled by algorithms. It’s always a question of how much you push it to the extreme, because we’re not doing a ChatGPT and writing essays here.CRM systems for tourism regions. This is a separate, very powerful system through
The issue of bed availability or booking options comes from our second business area, with which we provide booking, reservation and CRM systems for tourism regions. This is a separate, very powerful system through which a lot of information flows. Of course, in the future this will be controlled even more by algorithms, the more complex the systems become. It is always a question of how far you take this to the extreme, we are not doing ChatGPT or writing essays here.

With your Sitour company, you offer “analogue and digital information, safety and orientation systems for ski resorts as well as the marketing of a wide variety of advertising spaces and forms of advertising”. Is this a forward- looking business model if winter tourism goes downhill?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: Last winter a crisis was declared because of the really precarious snow situation in January. In summer, a crisis in Mediterranean tourism was declared because everything was burning down, and it was much too hot. Winter tourism and Mediterranean tourism will of course exist in the foreseeable future. It may be that it will shift regionally, but the winter of 2022/23 was also quite a successful winter, despite the poor snow conditions. The market is relatively stable, and so are the prices. Out-of-home is a form of advertising that is offered in a relaxed atmosphere and not in an underground station where people are on the move in their daily lives. There, people are certainly not as positively receptive as in a pleasant, relaxed holiday atmosphere. We can score a lot of points with that.

Are we talking exclusively about digital advertising media here?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: Most posters are analogue posters, which I also think very highly of, precisely because the atmosphere is relaxed. Sitting in an inn, waiting in line at the ski lift or sitting at the chairlift, a constant flashing in the background would not be so good.

On the other hand, Feratel offers marketing concepts for tourism businesses as a complete solution; this also includes systems for guest registration. Can all the elements, such as live cams and booking systems, be put together like a modular system?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: Generally, many destinations have these modules from us, but they also have their own large marketing departments that then use these modules. We have a subsidiary, Pixelpoint, which actually creates marketing concepts in the digital field. We don’t deliver marketing concepts ourselves, but the building blocks for them. There are places that make very intelligent use of camera images with information from the ski resort, points of interest, hotel and ski pass booking options and much more. That is our USP. As a rule, the entire guest registration system also runs via our technology, as do guest card systems such as the Carinthia Card or the Lower Austria Card. All this can be networked, of course.

It sounds as if Feratel is already in most tourist regions.
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: Yes, I would say so. But there is lively competition and rivalry.

Where is Feratel heading in the coming years? Will there be new markets?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: Our growth is mainly abroad. We want to become stronger in the large tourism markets of France and Italy, but we also want to be successful in Slovenia and Croatia. Of course, this is very difficult because it is a different kind of tourism, there are other players and other norms. But at the end of the day, the tourism flows and the wishes of the guests are the same. Therefore, our system should fit quite well. Where we already are, we want to maintain our market position, at best increase it and get an even greater density of customers.

Can you as an expert give a us tip: When is the best time to book a winter holiday?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: I can tell for Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and I would think that booking early is cheaper at the moment because there is high demand. In contrast to other consumer goods, there seems to be an unbroken demand for holidays, and people prefer to save on incidental expenses. Many places also offer dynamic prices, and there the prices are usually significantly cheaper if you book early. We’re talking about 20 to 30 per cent, and that has changed in the past four to five years.

A personal question: What is it like to follow in the footsteps of a legendary father (NB: Peter Schröcksnadel, longstanding President of the Austrian Ski Association and Vice-President of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation FIS)?
Schröcksnadel: Schröcksnadel: In sports it would be a disadvantage. My son raced in the European Cup and it was always a problem when he was at the start. They would say, “Here comes the president’s grandson.” For me, it was not a problem because we did separate things. My father was in the Austrian Ski Association, and I ran my business and made sure that I didn’t appear in public too often.

A personal question: What is it like to follow in the footsteps of a legendary father who is very prominent not only in Austria?
Schröcksnadel: In sport it would be a disadvantage. My son raced up to the European Cup and it was always a problem when he was at the start. They said: Now the president's grandson is coming. That often hinders performance. For me personally it was not a problem because we were separated. My father was in the ÖSV and I ran my business and made sure that I didn't appear in public that often.