Sony BMG Music Entertainment and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide are collaborating to create unique music-based entertainment services for guests at Starwood hotel brands.

Under the new deal, Sony BMG and Starwood Hotels will offer music programming in public hotel areas, in-room music and entertainment TV programming, custom music entertainment products, and access to special events and one-of-a-kind artist memorabilia at Starwood hotel brands. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, which has about 890 properties in more than 100 countries, owns and operates the Sheraton, W, Westin, Four Points, Le Meridien, St. Regis and The Luxury Collection brands. The program is launching first in the United States and then is expected to expand to other hotels worldwide by the end of the year.

Musicologists spent months researching demographics of different Starwood hotel brands to create music playlists that mirror the feel of each hotel brand, said JJ Rosen, executive vice president of SONY BMG's Commercial Music Group. Also, music will be different in the morning, afternoon, night and late night.

Although Rosen said, "It's dangerous to try to categorize [one hotel] brand by music style and artists," he said that guests will hear "a mix of different artists and music genres" at every hotel brand.

For example, guests at a W Hotel will hear in the lobby music by Sony artists to fit the W vibe. Then if guests want to buy a W compilation CD, which they can listen to in their hotel rooms, they can buy discs featuring 12 songs. Customized music compilation CDs will be available in hotel stores, mini-bars and hotel brands' online stores.

Talking about the different music styles that will be played in public areas of hotels, Rod Mano said, "That's not all figured out." Mano is senior director for entertainment strategy for Starwood Hotels.

Besides offering customized music CDs, the Sony-Starwood Hotels deal offers incentives for guests to participate in the Starwood's hotel loyalty program, Starwood Preferred Guest, and its new online auction website, Moments by Starwood Preferred Guest. At the site, members can use their Starpoints, or points gained from hotel visits, to bid in an eBay-like way on one-of-a-kind music experiences.

"Our plan is to make available once-in-a-lifetime experiences" and products with a fixed run, Rosen said.

Rosen said he envisions auctioning off good concert seats, access to sound checks and artist meet-and-greets, and more, although none of those details have been worked out yet. Also, Sony might create fine art prints of classic artists' album cover artwork and auction them off as well.

In addition, TVs in Starwood hotel rooms will feature a Sony channel carrying a 60-minute loop of videos, including exclusive content, clips from concerts and music videos. Guests then can watch the exclusive concerts by pay-per-view at a price not yet determined.

"The reason why we approved the deal is because it's a win-win on both sides," Rosen said. It's a way to expose Sony music artists in new, intelligent ways, he added.

Also, Mano said that although some hotels collaborate with one artist, the Sony-Starwood deal is good because the hotels will have an ongoing relationship with many artists.

Mano declined to make predictions on how much money the companies will make or how many guests he thinks the deal will bring to Starwood hotels. "It's not really about revenue for either party," he said. Mano said that the deal is more about exposing guests to new music and creating more engaging, memorable entertainment experiences for hotel guests.

The deal includes the following elements:

• Music Programming For Public Spaces: Sony BMG and Starwood are creating a tailored sound designed for each of the Starwood brands, creating musical experiences that mirror the look and feel of the individual hotel brand. Music will change in tone and tempo to reflect the time of day. Playlists are rolling out at Starwood hotels around the country.

• Music Programming for In-Room TV: Sony BMG will create special music-based programming for guests to view on Starwood's in-room TV network. The programming will include exclusive interviews with current and legendary artists, concert footage and music videos.

• Custom Music Products: Sony BMG will produce custom compilation CDs to complement the experience of each Starwood hotel. Also, Sony BMG will make available tracks and custom digital playlists for guests to buy through Starwood's hotel websites.

• Moments by Starwood Preferred Guest: Sony BMG will support Starwood's hotel loyalty program and its new online auction website. It will develop rewards and VIP access to special events and music memorabilia.

• Interactive Music Venues for Web and Broadband Portals: Sony BMG will create online music services to let consumers check out and buy Sony artists' music through the hotel brands' web sites and broadband portals. Streaming audio/video programming and online stores will be on hotel brands' websites. The first to launch is W Video Mix video player, which is at www.whotels.com.