What is the Marriott Communications Network (MCN) and why is it required for Delta Hotels By Marriott?
Delta_Hotels_By_Marriott Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
ered by the Program Services Contribution. You must pay an additional charge of $17 to $30 per month per POS workstation at the hotel, which includes the cost of patching services relating to the POS system. You must pay directly to Oracle a fee of $379 per month for each additional POS system terminal at your hotel. The annual hardware support fee (recommended) is estimated to be approximately 15% of the cost to purchase the POS system hardware. The estimated third-party costs associated with the POS system are provided to us by our vendors and are subject to change. Add-on services may be available at an additional cost.
(5) Reservation System and Yield Management System.
You must use the reservation system and yield management system that we designate for Delta hotels. The reservation system assists with reservations, check-in, charge posting, accounts receivable, night audit, check-out, housekeeping, and guest history. The yield management system is a web-based guestroom inventory management system that provides forecasting tools and makes inventory recommendations. The reservation system and yield management system will interface with your hotel's PMS. The initial costs associated with the reservation system and yield management system are included
in the PMS system costs described above. The ongoing costs of the reservation system and yield management system are covered by the Program Services Contribution.
(6) Marriott Communications Network ("MCN") and Property Network Standards. In order to securely connect to Marriott business applications and services that are hosted off-property, a connection to the Marriott Communications Network (MCN) is required. A Marriott router installed at your hotel provides end-to-end encryption to the MCN. All hotels are required to have primary and failover internet connections for MCN connectivity, for which you are strongly encouraged to use Marriottapproved Internet Service Providers (ISP). A secondary internet connection for MCN connectivity is recommended to maintain full connectivity in the event the primary internet connection fails; the required failover connection only provides connectivity to critical Marriott applications.
Source: Item 10 — FINANCING (FDD pages 82–101)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 FDD, the Marriott Communications Network (MCN) is a system that enables secure connection to Marriott business applications and services hosted off-property. Delta Hotels By Marriott requires franchisees to connect to the MCN, and this connection is facilitated through a Marriott router installed at the hotel, providing end-to-end encryption.
For a Delta Hotels By Marriott franchisee, this means they must have both primary and failover internet connections to ensure continuous MCN connectivity. While the FDD strongly encourages using Marriott-approved Internet Service Providers (ISPs), the internet connection costs are paid directly to third-party vendors. The ongoing Marriott support charge for MCN connectivity, including the Marriott router, is covered by the Program Services Contribution.
In addition to the MCN, franchisees are required to install and maintain a franchisee-managed network (FMN) for hotel devices, with implementation costs ranging from approximately $25,000 to $30,000. Furthermore, franchisees must retain a third-party managed service provider (MSP) to support IT infrastructure, assist in cybersecurity incidents, and manage compliance and IT risk, with anticipated costs of approximately $4,000, plus ongoing costs that vary depending on the MSP chosen and services provided. All devices connected to the MCN must also be enrolled in the Continent Field Support program, which provides a centralized point of contact for support related to the MCN, PMS, POS, and other required systems.