Dilipkumar "Danny" Patel, 2007 AAHOA chairman, discusses AAHOA membership growth in front of the association's board of directors.

San Antonio–Ten years after releasing a set of standards for franchisor-franchisee relationships it calls the "12 points of fair franchising," the Asian American Hotel Owners Assn. released a "harsh" progress report detailing how five major hotel franchisors are complying with those standards.

"We continue to engage the franchisors," said Fred Schwartz, president of AAHOA. "This is not something meant to drive a wedge between the franchisee and the franchisor; this is a process and we want to make sure we have good dialogue with the franchisors."

Danny Patel [from left] , Fred Schwartz and Mukesh Mowji—all members of the AAHOA board of directors at one time—discuss the release of AAHOA's fair franchising report.

"We are trying to send a message to the franchise boards on the concerns we have," added 2007 AAHOA chairman Dilipkumar "Danny" Patel.

The AAHOA board of directors spent the past two years revisiting its fair franchising document, updating it and reviewing how franchisors are acting in accordance with it. The board released its newest report to all AAHOA members, as well as the five franchisors outlined in the report, during its 2008 convention in San Antonio.

With 8,700 members who own more than 22,000 hotels in the United States, AAHOA is growing tremendously and considers itself "the voice of owners" in the hospitality industry.

"We control more than 50 percent of the hotel rooms in this industry," Danny Patel said during his opening remarks at the convention.

With strength in numbers, AAHOA lobbies for fair franchising, which the board said is the lifeblood of the association. It spends significant amounts of time meeting with franchisors and discussing hot-button franchise contract topics, such as early termination and liquidated damages, window provisions and penalties for underperforming properties.