INTANGIBLES AS FUTURE VALUE CREATORS: THE CASE OF THE HOTEL INDUSTRY

The paper aims to provide evidence about the significance of intangibles in the hotel industry. The research investigates their importance for Croatian, Slovenian and Austrian hotel industry in the period 2004–2008. The results prove that despite their growing significance, accentuated by recent research, there is no presence of major growth related to intangible assets in the hotel industry. More detailed analysis further demonstrates that the hotel industry does not operate with a major share of intangibles in comparison with the largest domestic companies. Additional results point to the fact that larger companies possess a greater extent of intangibles in comparison with smaller companies. Therefore further research approaches could analyze the reasons that lead to these results and possible solutions that could stimulate the awareness of intangibles as a source of competitive advantages.