By Dawn Maruna (May 11, 2018, 2:54 PM EDT) -- The U.S. hospitality industry is eager to know how European Union Regulation 2016/679, more commonly known as the General Data Protection Regulation, will impact it, especially with respect to the guest experience, internal operations, marketing efforts and vendor relationships. With the GDPR enforcement deadline fast approaching on May 25, 2018, every business that offers goods or services to or collects behavioral data from European residents should have already determined whether the GDPR is likely to apply to its operations and considered whether and how it intends to address the GDPR's compliance obligations. For most businesses, the prospect of erasing legacy personal data to avoid GDPR compliance is simply infeasible, although U.K.-based pub chain J.D. Wetherspoon reportedly exercised this option by deleting their entire customer email database, and ignoring GDPR compliance obligations may not only prove illegal, but invite hefty financial penalties amounting up to the greater of 20 million euros or 4 percent of the business' worldwide annual revenue for the prior fiscal year....