Canadian Pacific Hotels & Resorts and Apple Canada have entered into a partnership that will promote the Apple PowerBook with the corporate traveller.

As a courtesy, customers who get CP Hotels’ premium Entree Gold service will be given personal access to Macintosh Powerbook computers.

This alliance will be kicked off with a contest for all guests of CP Hotels that will give them the chance to win computers, vacations and gift certificates.

During the promotion, which lasts until Dec. 31, guests will have the chance to try the Macintosh PowerBook 520c and Newton MessagePad 110 at displays in the hotel lobbies.

The Apple platform is generally less popular than pc-based systems among corporate customers.

‘I think it was for that very reason Apple was anxious to expose its product to the business traveller,’ says Ann Checkley, director of communications at CP Hotels.

‘There’s something in it for both of us,’ Checkley says.

‘Apple is anxious to expose its product to that market, and we’re interested in serving the needs of that market,’ she says.

‘cp is a 100-year-old company, so we also want people to know that we’re open to new technology.’

The jointly funded national newspaper and billboard advertising for the campaign is being done by bbdo.