Something Entertaining in the Air - PC WORLD

This review pertains to commercial aircraft in-flight entertainment, but I thought it made some good points about the airlines being forced to differentiate their products based on the quality of on-board IFE.

Some airlines are cutting back on the peanuts; others are giving you a reason to bring your own popcorn.

"For me, the most interesting thing is what JetBlue inaugurated with its live satellite feed," says David Stempler, president of the ATA. "That means I can watch CNN live on air. You really get the feeling you're never out of touch."

Similarly, Delta's two-year-old "high-style, low-fare" Song airline is offering 24 channels of Dish Network satellite programming, including NBC, CNN, E, The Movie Channel, and Travel. The airline also offers 24 channels of MP3 audio programming, the ability to create individual playlists from its programming, ten pay-per-view movies (at $5 a pop), as well as video games and a trivia game that allows you to compete against other passengers--all delivered to your own LCD screen on the back of the seat in front of you. Frontier Airlines offers 24 channels of DirecTV programming, although it costs you $5 per trip leg for the privilege.

Wireless at 30,000 Feet
Just last month, Boeing added a streaming television service that lets you watch four channels on your laptop. That's on top of its high-speed wireless Internet service, Connexion by Boeing, which launched in May 2004, and is now available on Lufthansa, SAS, ANA, Japan Airlines, Singapore Airlines, and China Airlines.

Read the full article at PCWorld.com by Cathy Lu.

¶ 7:09 PM