IdeaNova
IdeaNova is a software company with a decade of experience in IT security and secure video streaming. Inplay secure streaming pioneered distribution and integration of Digital Rights Management (DRM) technologies for modern Inflight Entertainment systems (IFE) and the Media and Entertainment industry. Their services and products are designed to reduce the complexities of delivering security solutions via attractive, reliable, state of the art technology to their clients. Inplay secure streaming delivers ready to use comments and end-to-end IFE software on passengers’ own devices or inseat displays. IFExpress had the opportunity ask Juraj Siska, CEO of IdeaNova, about some of their developments since our last interview last March.
- Tell us about your Inplay Live TV player – what is unique about it?
IdeaNove: Inplay Live is not only a player but a complete infrastructure to support streaming of live content to aircraft. It is a solution that we have been working on for several years and while it leverages our existing Inplay components (e.g. the player as you mentioned), it provides us and our customers with a completely new set of features. These are the features that take advantage of network available on connected aircraft to deliver live TV in a much more flexible, scalable and affordable way than what we see today. - How does your new 3D player work? And any launch customers for it yet?
IdeaNova: Our Inplay VR (virtually reality) has 360 view capabilities and to our knowledge is the only player that can play DRM content in VR. This player has the same set of features and capabilities as our traditional players, but is capable of displaying secure, encrypted content on any VR device. We are talking to several customers about this product. - What is unique about the new IFE Portal that was a finalist for the 2019 APEX award?
IdeaNova: Our IFE portal has been shortlisted to be among the three best IFE products this year. With this product, airlines can take advantage of rapid deployment of entertainment features on any IFE hardware. Our portal provides massive customization features and is designed with the passenger in mind. We wanted to reduce the obstacles that passengers have to go through when accessing IFE content. With this main design principle, we built an IFE portal that is available in connected or disconnected mode, it takes passenger only one click to watch a movie and we also reduced the effort it takes to discover content. With these convenience features we have not lost track of accessibility and security. The portal and the player make it easier to enjoy movies for people with disabilities and is available in multiple languages. On the back end, we have increased security of our DRM servers to be in compliance with new Apex specs without sacrificing user convenience when discovering and playing movies and TV shows. - Any other new products or features coming out (esp. any submissions for the Crystal Cabin awards?)
IdeaNova: We must constantly innovate so our company can remain relevant in this market. With respect to the Crystal Cabin submission, we are especially proud of our partnership with North Central College, which is a university within a stones throw from our office. This partnership allowed us to submit under the college category – a feature that we believe enhances our IFE portal in a more socially interactive way and makes passengers become part of a community of travelers. - Anything happening on the DRM front – i.e., any new security provisions coming out for HDR or 4K Ultra content?
IdeaNova: There are a lot of new changes, especially as a result of APEX spec 0415 v2. As the studios are releasing higher and higher quality content to airlines, their requirements for content security are increasing. These requirements can range from software adjustment, introduction of tamper proof components, which by the way could be very expensive, to changes in the way we build IFE hardware.
Overall, these changes are necessary as they improve the security posture of IFE systems. Here at IdeaNova we have recently made a major breakthrough with how we handle encryption using available IFE hardware. This breakthrough allowed us to keep the cost of the IFE software down while meeting studio requirements for higher quality content.
KID Systeme
The intelligent and smart cabin is a key element on Boeing’s ecoDemonstrator 777 flying test bed and it is taking new technologies out of the lab and into the air – and to Frankfurt airport (Germany) on static display on November 19th and 20th. “Intelligent & Smart Cabin” (i+sCabin) is a research project for the definition of standards for connected cabin features that has been launched in 2018, comprising the industrial partners KID-Systeme, Bühler Motor, Diehl Aviation, Jeppesen, and Zodiac Aerospace (a Safran company).
The i+sCabin is supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, which has identified the research project as an important component of their aviation research program, endorsing the prioritization of the project with a 3.9 million Euro grant.
With the Boeing Company and Etihad Engineering (part of the Etihad Aviation Group) this program has found premium sponsors which secures an international footprint for the achievements of this project. Prestigious university partners (the Baden- Württemberg Cooperative State University and the Hamburg University of Technology) are equally associated partners of the project as well.
Boeing’s 2019 ecoDemonstrator program includes connected cabin technologies in which the i+sCabin is a key part of 777 test bed. Flying test installations on board Boeing’s ecoDemonstrator 777 will allow the i+sCabin team to test the principles of cabin communications standards, wireless communications sensor networks and smart functions of galleys very early in the envisioned environment. Also, the team will be able to collect data for predictive health monitoring, making the real-flight environment a valuable addition to the project’s test schedule.
i+sCabin is progressing well on schedule since its launch in 2018, with the main milestone of implementation and testing of the first version of the cabin communication standard expected towards the end of 2019 and in the course of 2020, and project finalization set for 2021.
As part of the ecoDemonstrator’s flight test program, Boeing is bringing the aircraft to Germany’s biggest airport in Frankfurt for a two-day program on November 19th and 20th. In addition, on November 20th the Etihad Aviation Group will invite to bilateral meetings between UAE and German representatives in order to discuss new future projects. The technology mission of Boeing’s 2019 ecoDemonstrator program will be presented on both days to government officials, industry representatives and STEM students to help inspire the next generation in aerospace leadership.”
Panasonic Avionics
Panasonic Avionics Corporation (Panasonic Avionics) named Ken Sain as chief executive officer. He succeeds Hideo Nakano, who has served as Panasonic Avionics CEO since 2017 and as deputy CEO prior to that. Nakano will now serve as Special Advisor for Panasonic Avionics.
Sain, who most recently served as vice president of Digital Solutions and Analytics for Boeing Global Services and as CEO of Boeing subsidiary Jeppesen, will join Panasonic Avionics on December 2, 2019.
“We are excited to welcome Ken to the Panasonic team,” said Michael Moskowitz, chairman and CEO of Panasonic Corporation of North America, the parent company of Panasonic Avionics. “His entrepreneurial spirit and proven track record in aviation will undoubtedly accelerate Panasonic’s customer-centric innovation and the digital transformation journeys of its airline customers.”
Hideo Nakano, chief executive officer of Panasonic Avionics, said, “Throughout his career, Ken has demonstrated tremendous leadership in change management and business growth. This proven legacy of success, combined with his expertise in developing and launching inflight digital solutions, will no doubt help accelerate our mission to make flying an experience everyone looks forward to.”
“Panasonic Avionics created the aviation industry’s first inflight entertainment solution 40 years ago and became the market leader through continuous innovation,” said Ken Sain. “I’m both honored and excited to join the talented Panasonic team to build upon this success and redefine the passenger experience of the future with our airline customers.”
Throughout his 25-year career, Sain has developed a broad mix of cross-functional leadership experience. He is recognized as a passionate, customer-focused, aviation technology business leader with deep expertise in airline operations and maintenance.
Sain spent the last 14 years of his career with Boeing in various roles including strategy, technical engineering services and digital solutions. In his most recent role leading Digital Solutions and Analytics, he oversaw significant growth in Boeing’s customer-facing digital solutions portfolio, using agile software development to launch new products and cloud-based solutions for airline and business aviation customers around the world.
Prior to Boeing, Sain was a principal with global management consulting firm A.T. Kearney. For over ten years, he specialized in business strategy, operations and top-line growth for major airlines, airline alliances and travel technology providers.
Sain holds a Master of Business Administration from the Kellogg School of Management and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Northwestern University. After graduating from Northwestern, Sain was part of a small team to found Midway Airlines and subsequently served the airline in operations, market planning and as Director of Marketing.
Inmarsat
Generation Z (Gen Z – The LSE defines Generation Z as born between 1997 – 2012) are last-minute spenders when planning trips, presenting an opportunity for airlines to revolutionize inflight e-commerce and take revenue from elsewhere in the customer journey. New research from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), commissioned by Inmarsat Aviation, suggests that by 2028, Gen Z passengers will spend an average of $26 on travel purchases while on their flight. Generation Z is forecast to become the largest group of airline flyers globally within the next decade, with 1.2 billion flying each year by 2028 (Sky High Economics – Chapter Three: Capitalizing on Changing Passenger Behavior in a Connected World). The LSE estimates that this consumer group currently spends a collective $3.6 billion in items and services in the weeks leading up to a trip and upon arrival at their destination. These findings underscore a significant opportunity for airlines to shift spending onboard and to take a proportion of the revenue with an e-commerce model that supports the ‘last-minute’ approach of today’s ‘digital-first’ passengers. The research analyzed purchasing decisions made during three key phases of the customer journey before a holiday: more than a week before; in the days before; and upon arrival. It finds that Gen Z is the most likely of all generations to delay buying products and services for their trip until the days before they fly. While currently only one in ten passengers make an inflight duty-free purchase when they fly, there is a significant opportunity for airlines to monetize the growing trend for last-minute spending. According to the LSE, 70% of Millennials and Gen Z passengers indicate that they would delay arrangements for their trip until their flight if they knew that a reliable Wi-Fi connection would be available, and the necessary delivery infrastructure was in place (LSE Interviews 2017-2019).
OTHER NEWS
- How the Dumb Design of a WWII Plane Led to the Macintosh | WIRED We don’t need sell to this one to you, However, we must say the folks at WIRED really made the connection!
- Here is another plane solution – Why Do Plane Wings Tilt Upwards? – YouTube
- The folks at Quantum Country have built an amazing article on quantum computing. As they note: “Presented in a new mnemonic medium which makes it almost effortless to remember what you read.” It’s 26,000 words but it really is educational but here is a warning – “If you don’t have that mathematical background, you’ll need to acquire it.” Quantum computing for the very curious
- Want to watch about AI, good & bad? Here is FRONTLINE: In the Age of AI | Watch S2019 E5 | FRONTLINE | PBS | Official Site This is good!!
- So, you are on the plane and the traveler next to you claims, in the past, the Beatles were the worlds favorite band. Hmm, want to see who was from 1969 till today…dynamically! Best-Selling Music Artists 1969 – 2019 – YouTube
- Have you ever heard of Tuvalu? Well it might disappear soon so we want to go – Traveling to the Least Visited Country in the World – YouTube And here’s another – Flying to Tuvalu: A Dream Come True – YouTube
Editor’s Note: Next week we will have highlight coverage of the news from Dubai, including information relating to Airbus and Boeing – so stay tuned!
Lufthansa Systems and castLabs are working on new technology that allows movies to be played in a browser on iOS devices
Raunheim, Germany | March 19, 2018– Lufthansa Systems, with its wireless BoardConnect IFE solution, and partner castLabs will soon enable browser-based playback of DRM-protected movies on iOS devices. DRM stands for Digital Rights Management and regulates the copy protection of digital movie files. This new technology means that passengers will no longer need to pre-install an app to enjoy movies and TV series on their own iOS devices while on board a flight.
The latest version of iOS from Apple, 11.2, allows protected video content to be played on smartphones and tablets in the Safari browser. Previously, this was only possible with the help of a separate player app. “If passengers can simply enjoy our entertainment offering on their own devices as they wish instead of having to install an app before departure, we believe this will increase the number of users,” said Jan-Peter Gaense, Head of Passenger Experience Products & Solutions at Lufthansa Systems. “This not only improves the passenger experience but also creates a larger potential target audience for the airline’s advertising activities and ancillary revenue opportunities. Airlines also benefit from greater usability, as they no longer need to offer a separate app for their entertainment offerings.”
Different operating systems and device suppliers currently use different encryption formats for video file copy protection. This means that the same content has to be stored in several different formats for all passengers to be able to access it regardless of which device they are using. The new DRMtoday Onboard solution from castLabs changes all that. castLabs uses the Common Media Application Format (CMAF), which has a secure encryption converter. This means that airlines will only need to store a single encrypted video file on the aircraft for each movie or TV series that can then be safely used on any device.
“We are delivering technology that makes DRM-protected movie files playable on all devices, and in BoardConnect, Lufthansa Systems has a proven and comprehensive IFEC solution with which to provide its entertainment offering – a perfect combination,” said Michael Stattmann, CEO of castLabs.
Both companies are currently working on integrating DRMtoday’s new functionality into BoardConnect to give passengers app-free access to onboard entertainment in the future. Passengers simply connect their own devices to the aircraft’s WiFi and are automatically taken to the airline’s entertainment homepage. From there, they can watch all content through their browser, regardless of their device’s model and operating system.
This issue starts the review of show vendors we talked to during AIX 16 but, as you know, there were over 500 IFE booths so we will do the best in the next few issues to cover those we had the opportunity to interview. Noted also, we have uploaded all our show still shots and you can find them here. Over the next few weeks we will try to outline all we talked to so hopefully you will get a better understanding of the some of the show participants and their products, whether you went to Hamburg or not. Further, we try to dig a little deeper into company products and services – no matter what size the company we talk to, because quite often new ideas spring from new talent – let’s get started.
Gogo
Hamburg really scored the visitors at their 17th annual AIX show and with well over 16,000 visitors and 180 airlines, it’s no wonder that Gogo brought their B737-500 test airplane to the Hamburg airport for demo rides on the 2Ku system. No we weren’t on it, but we got in contact with Gogo’s Steve Nolan and he had a few interesting comments that we wanted to share with our readers. Firstly, we note that the Gogo/Airbus installation partnering on Airbus Bizjets is a solution that encompasses the retrofit installation of 2Ku on new A350 aircraft. And while we are on this subject, Gogo announced that they have partnered with Airbus to install, on a retrofit basis, 2Ku on new Airbus A350 aircraft. Delta will be the first U.S. airline to launch domestic 2Ku service as its first narrow-body aircraft takes flight later this month. Currently, they have more than 850 aircraft commitments to 2Ku across 10 airlines. And why, Steve told IFExpress that connectivity is booming: “We recently conducted a global study on in-flight connectivity and entertainment and found that the demand for in-flight connectivity services continues to soar and drive passenger behavior. When it comes to Wi-Fi, wireless entertainment, Live TV, App messaging and mobile voice, all categories lead the international demand over the US/Canada. Our global study showed that when choosing a flight, more than half of global travelers factor Wi-Fi into their choice of airline. The U.S. market has become virtually saturated with in-flight Wi-Fi and wireless in-flight entertainment. But, the interest in these services is even greater for travelers in the rest of the world, where the proliferation of in-flight connectivity is still in its early stages. Outside the U.S. and Canada, 86 percent of travelers say they are interested in using in-flight connectivity vs. 75 percent within the U.S. and Canada. When it comes to wireless in-flight entertainment, 76 percent of global travelers show interest vs. 67 percent of U.S. and Canadian travelers. The percentage of passengers boarding a flight with at least one Wi-Fi enabled device also continues to climb. Today, 90 percent of global passengers brought at least one Wi-Fi enabled device on-board their last flight. When it comes to smartphones and tablets, Android is the operating system of choice among global travelers. There are more than twice as many Android powered smartphones as iPhones being carried onboard the world’s commercial aircraft but we serve iOs as well.”
We also asked Steve about their status of AeroMexico and he noted that If you don’t remember, Gogo has signed a definitive agreement with Aeromexico, Mexico’s global airline, to provide in-flight Internet and wireless in-flight entertainment service on Embraer and Boeing 737 aircraft operated by Aeromexico. They are flying with their first aircraft (more installed) and they have been touting their service. Aeromexico was the first airline to commit to 2Ku and Gogo expects to deliver peak speeds of more than 70 Mbps to the aircraft and more than 100 Mbps to the aircraft when next generation satellites become available. They note that their 2Ku antenna is two times more spectrally efficient than other antennas in the commercial aviation market, which makes it capable of providing more bandwidth at less cost. We think “Muy Pronto” says it all!
Lastly, we want to commend Gogo for their production and free distribution of their 100+ page book: “From the Ground Up: How the Internet of Things will Give Rise to Connected Aviation.” The book gathers insight from more than 30 of the foremost leaders in aviation and technology and is free here. Get one… It is a very good introductory aviation read on IoT.
Axinom
Next we move on to Axinom, the European Software folks who absolutely understand data needed to supply inflight entertainment (content management system), DRM, and content delivery. Before we get lost in their buzz word methodology, we will let Marketing Manager Sara Pepic tell their story. But before we do, you might want to download the overview of their ‘products’ in aviation. Noted Sara: “The products/services we provide to the In-flight entertainment (IFE) service providers are: Axinom Content Management System (CMS), Axinom Digital Rights Management (DRM), Axinom Content Delivery System (CDS). We concentrate 100% on software, no hardware. We do not resell hardware, we provide software running on proven-standards based commercial off the shelf hardware certified for the aviation industry.” She went on to describe their software service: “There are three areas where you can understand the need for the above mentioned products:
a. The digital rights management and players (Google Widevine, Apple Fairplay, Microsoft PlayReady) to be able to play Hollywood content (this is “premium content”) on personal devices and any digital platform basically.
b. The content management system that allows you to manage all kinds of content (movies, newspaper, magazines, crew and passenger information, flight information, shopping items, payments, health data, etc.).
c. The content delivery system you need for two purposes: to bring all kinds of digital content over different pipes (4G 3G, Satellite, USB, SD, WiFi,…) to and from the vessel, and you need it to manage this in a protected and secure way.”
“Therefore,” she continued, “we recommend you watch the following video explanation. In this video, CEO Axinom Aerospace Ralph Wagner and Stefanie Schuster (Business Developer for Axinom Products) explain the entire workflow of Axinom Content Delivery System. How the content (e.g.news, magazines, live content, passenger data, aircraft and flight data, music, shop items, reporting data etc.) can be securely and robustly synchronized between on-ground and on-board storage. Some very important features of these products may be found on the following page under ‘Key Highlights’.”
Assuming you have downloaded the three (3) product charts, but in case you haven’t there are two reasons why you should – 1. Because it is clearly the way to understand what software and services they sell, and what their software does…and where it does it. 2. Never have we seen the full universe of related software, hardware, and task management needed for content handling in one understandable chart (3 actually). Get them and see what we mean, if for no other reason, Axinom understands the content universe and you need a copy of it to understand how and where the content lives in an IFE system – Brilliant!
After the show, we were curious enough about Axinom to ask their CEO to answer a few questions and you can find his answers here.
Finally, here are a few links to videos that explain the whole story – study them and you will probably know more about content management software than your boss!
Please find the summary of their corporate profile here
More information and important details about Axinom products:
Axinom in the aerospace industry:
Axinom | Kurgartenstr. 37 | 90762 Fuerth, Germany
phone: +49 911 80109-17
pepic@axinom.com | www.axinom.com
(Editor’s Note: We were really impressed with this company for at least 2 reasons. First, they were the first group that developed a cartoon layout of the IFE content world that we never understood, and secondly, they are very nice people and helped us with the story considerably – give them a call if your content is in need of help!)
VTS
VTS is an off-shoot of Inflight Services Inc. the company which pioneered and very first to install a movie entertainment system on board a commercial aircraft about 45 years ago. Inflight was for many years the main supplier entertainment systems to the airline industry. When Inflight ceased operations at the end of 1986, the core of its senior technical staff joined in forming Video Technology Services Inc., VTS to continue supplying the customer airlines with advanced video products and the highest levels of service. The company was bought out recently, we chatted with Web Barth, one of the new management and he said: “An airline with 180 VTS DVP units on 17 aircraft has ‘documented’ a $1 Million annual savings on videotape maintenance and that does not include the savings from the videotape logistics and replacement expense.” He went on: “When you have some airline repeat for 15+ years, you get to know a lot about maintaining older systems and airlines needs with regards to maintaining entertainment quality with affordable practical solutions.” VTS’ products, we learned, include a full range of audio, video and communication equipment for system installation on any type of aircraft configuration including individual, overhead, and Audio/Video On Demand via seat integrated entertainment systems. The company stressed their ‘lowest industry price’ more than once and it seems that it is a feature they are quite proud of… noted Barth: “VTS understands how a broken seatback system provides a huge passenger service problem, especially on older long haul aircraft, but $4 – $6,000 per seat for a new seatback system ($2-$5 Million replacement) that investment in older aircraft can be daunting. The solution is the new VTS Seatback Retrofit and Upgrade System, which simply removes the old seatback monitor and very heavy video cables and junction boxes and then installing a new VTS Streaming Server and WAPs and VTS high definition seatback, touch screens, powered by the older system’s seat power, each with its own WiFi antenna and receiver. The benefits are: Immediate IFE System Improvement, cost, weight and fuel savings; Video resolution increases 400% and with new and larger screen 7″ vs 5.6″, with modern movie format 16 x 9”. The biggest benefits are savings; 1/3 of cost of conventional system replacement and very significant fuel saving by reducing 80% of the weight (500 pounds vs 2,500+pounds), which could pay for the new and better entertainment system in 2-4 years in fuel savings alone.” We asked about installation and he told IFExpress: “Now, airlines can have an affordable, super light weight In-flight entertainment system that can be installed in hours and on any sized aircraft from commuters, regional jets to Wide-bodies of any age providing the first entertainment system or IFE replacement/supplement system. Further, they can have fleet wide IFE even in their smallest aircraft or cost effectively replace/supplement an obsolete system. The VTS Streaming system server and WAPs weigh about 20 pounds and install in a few hours. For some airlines out VTS Turnkey Entertainment Content Programs can be very attractive as VTS can also provision and frequently refresh entertainment content in various languages for airlines worldwide.” It looks like airlines that want a low cost, lightweight system have another solution, VTS – check out their website or give Web a call.
VTS Video Technology Services, Inc., 8 Aerial Drive, Syosset, New York 90000
Telephone: +1 (516) 937-9700
Contact: WebBarth@VTS.Global.com
MORE NEWS:
- Ben Fuller is now with fts-aero and is Director of Marketing, Americas.
- Need a new, small earphone for travel? You might wait for the SONY Xperia. It could be the future of high tech earbuds!
- Heard about WebRTC? You might find someone on your next flight using it…legally or illegally, we guess? WebRTC – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Want a bigger seat back screen on your plane? Please Let These Meganormous Screens Be the Future of Flying | WIRED
Trip Note: Lufthansa provided a great flight to Hamburg and here’s a great DLH B747 seat tip… try to get in row 29… same leg spacing as Economy Plus but at the regular economy price!
Zodiac Inflight Innovations
Perhaps the biggest Zodiac (Zii) news we discussed was the announcement in June of the Zodiac selection by Airbus for high bandwidth connectivity and they note that Zii was chosen as a Buyer Furnished Equipment (BFE) for the Airbus High Bandwidth Connectivity (HBC) solution. Zodiac Inflight Innovations is supplying aircraft equipment, and other terminal hardware. As Lead supplier, Zodiac Inflight Innovations will manage the integration of the system and facilitate the Inmarsat Global Xpress service directly. The current scope of the HBC program covers the Ka-band system for A320 single aisle family, the A330 long range family and the A380 aircraft. Larry Girard, Executive Vice President at Zodiac Inflight Innovations states: “The end result will be that airlines will be able to have different HBC options on multiple aircraft types, while providing a consistent service to both passengers and the airlines day-to-day operations. As the Lead supplier, Zodiac Inflight Innovations’ role is bringing together all the components for the High Bandwidth Connectivity program, including our own, and matching them to the Airbus process.” Zodiac Inflight Innovations is providing an ARINC-791 compliant radome, adapter plate, skirt seal, antenna, as well as other terminal hardware. The radome and adapter plate have been designed to be sufficiently flexible to accommodate other Ka-band antennas, minimizing the work required for future HBC systems. This makes Zii the only IFE connectivity vendor across the current Airbus aircraft platforms – that’s a big deal! Twenty five airlines around the world with over 200 aircraft in service are already using Zii Inflight Entertainment which includes their RAVE Centric AVOD system and their latest RAVE Wireless streaming entertainment system (system diagram). Today, some 250 people work in Brea, CA (Zii’s home) and we expect to see more sale troops in the near future. Success at Airbus include line-fit on A350, A330, & A320 families. Further, we expect some events with Boeing soon. On the retrofit side, Zii told us that they have a ‘variety of suppliers’ to provide turn-key installations from hardware to certification, including long term support.
From a hardware perspective, Zii has a new supply of screens available that include 10.1”, 11.6”, 13.3”, and a stunning 18.5” screen. We note that the last three are 1080p devices! And yes, all are dockable units. We also note that they are not streaming to each seat – there is a 1.5 TB storage in the seatback electronics so content is downloaded prior to display and we note the quality is beautiful. As Harry Gray, VP Sales & Marketing, noted: “Storage in the STU cloud and at the seat delivers stunning and reliable inseat display images.” We agree.
SITA OnAir
SITA OnAir demonstrated how the passenger experience is being transformed by their e-Aircraft concept. They discussed the key developments based on the advent of the global high through-put satellite link, GX Aviation. In fact, they showed how the increased connectivity affected 6 key ‘audiences’ (aircraft included) for the improved data rates: 1) Passengers benefit from a richer, more interactive infotainment experience. At the Expo they launched their latest inflight portal for passengers, 2) Cabin Crew can now personalize passenger interaction with real-time information available at their fingertips. Also, they demonstrated their latest CrewTablet developments, 3) Cockpit Crew can also deliver a safer, more comfortable journey to passengers thanks to live weather updates sent directly to EFBs, 4) Flight Operations can enhance passenger safety by tracking aircraft wherever they are in the world using AIRCOM FlightTracker – and a number of airlines have already signed up, 5) Aircraft transmits maintenance requirement data, ensuring teams are waiting at the gate to keep turnaround time to a minimum, 6) And finally, Air Traffic Control enhances both safety and efficiency by streamlining communications between pilots and air traffic managers. SITA likes to call these ‘nose-to-tail’ solutions and they told IFExpress that there is an airline evaluating all these functions in real time today. One of the SITA OnAir prophets is Francois Rodriguez, Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer and he told IFExpress: “It is all real and being deployed and we are working with airlines to enable them all with nose-to-tail solutions.” If you are curious about the joining of the two companies and their resultant efforts, their website sheds a bit more information on their combined strategy: “On January 1 2015 , SITA and OnAir formed SITA OnAir as part of the SITA Group, to help airlines realize the full potential of the connected aircraft. The core of the new business organization is SITA’s proven knowledge of airline communications and IT, and OnAir’s expertise in supplying in-flight connectivity. By bringing together SITA’s and OnAir’s industry leadership and expertise; in ground and inflight connectivity, cockpit data services and air traffic management solutions, aircraft communications and infrastructure solutions, as well as application development for both passengers and crew, SITA OnAir sets the benchmark for true nose-to-tail solutions. SITA OnAir provides the complete range of products and services an airline needs to realize the full potential of the connected aircraft regardless of fleet size, route structure or aircraft type.” And lastly, SITA OnAir demonstrated a passenger App that interacts with passengers during their entire flight, As an example, they use beacon technology to connect with the passenger on the ground and continues via a hand-off with them in the air. You can find out more about SITA OnAir here and check out their e-aircraft portfolio. Stay Tuned.
Jetpack
One of the more interesting small companies that we discovered last year at AIX, was Jetpack from England. They were at APEX this year and while we noted their independent programming collections, they abound in a lot of technology and gadgets that they have developed for airlines. While we don’t know how successful they have been, their Director of Technology, Ed Pleydell-Bouverie was one of the most interesting fellows at the show. He told IFExpress: “We have developed iBeacons, a Portable App Distributer that uses Raspberry Pi computer, augmented reality glasses, and a lot of ‘specialty devices’ for airlines.“ Perhaps his best comment that summed up their charter was, “We do oddball stuff.” Yes you do, Ed, yes you do!
BAE Systems
The anti-hacking surprise award at APEX goes to BAE Systems and if you have never talked to Dave Kingston about the subject – do so! We met Dave last year when we talked about their power supplies for inseat applications. As head of Business Development, he had our complete attention and for the first time, we heard a lot about anti hacking on commercial aircraft via the connectivity systems. We got the crypto discussions when they mentioned their content encrypted entertainment programming. The IntelliCabin devices can download encryption Apps that allow their DRM players to send out first encrypted entertainment without worry of copying or data intervention. It seems that they had to prove to the studios that the player Apps do not corrupt, omit, or scramble transmitted movie frames; as a result, some of the major Hollywood movie houses have approved their solution. This is a big deal. Dave told us that they have been working the issue for 18 months, and focusing on a solution for the last six. The reason BAE Systems can do what they do is buried in their $26 B military business that dwells in cybersecurity, military contracts and technology in general. They consulted on the security problem with movie content, accessed their practices and evaluated their network security. In fact, the tech folks there simulated attacks and looked across the whole air and ground IFE and content systems. Dave told us that currently IntelliCabin is not on a connected aircraft, but from a total security point of view, they will have to simulate more attack scenarios that include passenger attempts to load malware on devices that talk to the streaming source of content in the air and ground via their PEDs. This is big stuff and BAE Systems is a leader now in this technology. Obviously, this will make their products more marketable, especially in the near future when these critical and non-critical domains are attacked. Dave summed it up perfectly: “Our Wi-Fi is now the equal of an embedded system.” Their App software knows what device it is running on, it adjusts to that device, the user interface adapts to the device (This is a very nice function), and the system constantly adapts to the streaming content, including the adjustment of the device controls. As far as we know, no one else does this ‘cloud adaptation’ of content streaming. BAE Systems has come a long way and their focus on security will pay off, especially when the studios get a look at their solutions.
Involved with security in your company? You might want to read this.
If you are an engineer, or you like science and engineering, you must go see ‘The Martian’, you wont Be disappointed. Sir Ridley Scott is a genius.
Lastly, Ron Chapman noted recently that future inflight connectivity users might have a frequent ‘FFLYA’ in their future. Oh, look it up!
- eXW IFE provides a vast selection of entertainment content to passengers using their smartphones, tablets and computers for viewing in flight
Lake Forest, CA and Sunnyvale, CA | February 24, 2015– Panasonic Avionics Corporation (Panasonic) and Intertrust announced today that Panasonic’s wireless in-flight entertainment (IFE) system, eXW, uses Intertrust’s ExpressPlay Marlin Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology to protect and manage in-flight content libraries.
“We selected Intertrust’s ExpressPlay technology for two reasons,” said Laurie da Silva, Senior Vice President of Engineering, Panasonic Avionics. “It is a proven technology used in consumer devices like TVs and consumer gaming consoles, and it meets all of our IFE specific requirements for eXW. With ExpressPlay, our customers can offer a premium wireless entertainment experience backed by robust security endorsed and approved by the leading content providers that serve our industry.”
Panasonic’s eXW is an advanced wireless IFE system that delivers on-board movies, music, news and in-cabin services to passengers’ personal electronic devices. It supports Android and iOS smartphones and tablets, as well as laptop computers with Internet Explorer, Safari, Chrome, and Firefox browsers. DRM helps protect copyrighted material by ensuring secure delivery and distribution of content during flight. Marlin’s unique ability to provide offline DRM provisioning is especially important in aircraft that do not have a data connection to the ground. This advantage can eliminate the need for passengers to download an airline-specific app before boarding their flight.
“Panasonic and Intertrust have worked together for years on DRM and a variety of other projects in consumer electronics and content distribution,” said Gilles Boccon-Gibod, SVP and Chief Architect at Intertrust. “Working on building Marlin into their latest wireless IFE systems is a privilege as it puts all of the features of our Marlin technology through serious moves to build a brilliant and dynamic content distribution system for travelers”
Okay, they never really left. With the new DivX IFE solution, Omniview, they are about to enter the IFE industry again, offering a streaming video entertainment product. If you remember back in 2003, the DivX hardware/software solution found it’s home on the digEcor line of handheld inflight video players. On February 5, 2015 DivX announced a new solution for video streaming applications and you are about to see a lot more from them! “DivX, LLC, a leading provider of next-generation digital video technologies, today announced the launch of its secure, In-Flight Entertainment (IFE) solution. An extension to DivX® OmniView, the new solution enables airlines and aircraft manufacturers to differentiate their in-flight entertainment experience and reduce costs.” The release went on: “The DivX OmniView solution for OTT video delivery includes video encoding and packaging, studio-approved DivX DRM technology and secure players for multiple devices and platforms including iOS, Android, Smart TVs, set-top boxes and PCs. With the DivX OmniView solution on board, airlines will be able to offer passengers secure video on phones, tablets and PCs in-flight, with our without a connection to ground internet.” The big deal here is the ability of airlines to load encrypted video entertainment on their servers and for travelers to securely stream the latest movies (or whatever) to their portable devices, preloaded with an airline’s DivX enabled App.
DivX has been around for 15 years and their core technology has been in video compression. The company has gone through several bouts of ownership but their focus has been on Internet video streaming. They admit that their technology has been installed on “billions of devices” and they have worked with all the major (and minor) studios in the process of protecting copyrighted content both in hardware and in software. Historically, DivX strength has been in the protection of content streamed via the Internet; however, their new inflight entertainment solution does not require Internet connectivity. Since they have developed a disconnected DivX DRM licensing server, they have a capability to operate without it. We note their solution works with Android, iOS and, Windows devices.
Here is how the system works (see the graphic above). DivX encoded movies and content are loaded via USB or SSD devices on the ground onto the aircraft Content Distribution Network hard drive. Prior to content loading, the DivX Omniview codec software is installed on the server. The DivX encoded content on the CDN server provides the streaming “intelligence” for transmission (via Wi-Fi) inside the plane. Passengers who have downloaded the airline App that contains the DivX “reader” software, can now view the secured movie on their device. The server software and the passenger device work out the secure network coding to enable the movie to play flawlessly. “By using a built-in feature called “‘quick start” which ensures DivX is first to frame 1, reducing the amount of time spent watching the spinning wheel and keeping viewers engaged,” the company said. They make a point that spooling can reduce viewings and reduce revenue. “DivX encoding profiles and device certification enable the service to reduce buffering, reducing the number of viewers that quit a program before its finished.”
Hans Baumgartner, Senior Director of Product Management told IFExpress, “On the plane, we provide the codec software, usually on LINUX platform, and DivX requires a very low CPU requirement so it is just software on the airline server. We also provide Player Packs for Android (or whatever) app developers from the airlines to build the downloadable software for passengers.”
And speaking of codec’s here is bit more on how they work: DivX uses industry-standard h.264 and HEVC codecs for their streaming technologies, and their secret sauce can be found in their streaming and security technologies. For now, most PEDs will use H.264 for video playback, but HEVC is making its way into new devices for a 30-50% bitrate savings! For adaptive streaming, DivX has created a set end of end set of codec profiles that are used both for the configure encoders and to certify playback solutions. The DivX rules configure the file structure and buffer rules to allow playback on any type of device, from phone to 84” TV, using the same batch of files. Consumer electronic products and playback software are thoroughly tested as part of the DivX Certification program at one of their test labs around the world. This allows DivX players to reliably and seamlessly switch between bitrates and resolutions as well as change audio and subtitle languages. All the media files are stored separately on the server to save space. The DivX Players dynamically pull down the individual segments of video, audio and subtitle files and combine them in the player so the server doesn’t have to package up all of the combinations of videos and languages. This scheme saves storage space, bandwidth and server horsepower… especially useful on a plane. DivX also allows a user to full-screen fast-forward and rewind through a streaming movie as if it were playing from a local disc. Behind the scenes, this is done with a special DivX trick-play-track that lets the user seek without hogging bandwidth or suffering through a bunch of buffering. For security, DivX provides supports both software-based and hardware-based security to meet studio robustness rules all the way up to 4k (but don’t expect 4k on the plane real soon!).
IFExpress asked the DivX team why they entered the inflight entertainment market at this juncture. They told us they knew they had the technology, and wanted to build a system that is better targeted for the IFE market… a secure system, even when “disconnected from the ground.” Mr. Baumgartner noted that when talking to top industry vendors, they saw a real need for the product because of the growing BYOD (bring your own device) demand and a need for an improved offering. With the acceleration of first run movies (early release), they understand the issues of the studios. The President and CEO, Dr. Kanaan Jemili said: “The new inflight entertainment capability of the DivX® OmniView solution furthers the DivX brand promise of delivering a better video experience across multiple screens. DivX is already delivering that experience at home and on the go, and now we’re extending our reach and capabilities to 30,000ft above the ground.”
Lastly, the DivX team told IFExpress that their product was very price competitive, both airlines and vendors will like that, but we like the idea of first run movies. This looks to be a Win-Win solution. And if you want to talk with the DivX winners at AIX Hamburg they will be walking the floor. Contact: Jamie Potter, Senior Sales Manager, 858-882-0893, Jamie.Potter@divx.com for more information.
(Editors Note: MPEG-4 is still the standard under APEX 0403, we think HEVC is coming and will be addressed at the May APEX Technology Conference – but 0403 does not specify a DRM. Going forward the DRMs with the greatest likelihood of getting content provider approval are the DRMs codified in UltraViolet. The six UltraViolet DRMs are: Widevine, Marlin, OMA, Microsoft PlayReady, Adobe Primetime, and DivX, at least that is what we understand. We also note, Industry consultant Bryan Rusenko commented that as one of the approved DRM technologies available in DECE’s UltraViolet system DivX has been vetted by content owners. This is a huge advantage for content delivery, whether as part of a streaming solution, or a future configuration. Also, as of a few weeks ago, DivX is now part of NeuLion… the folks who power the top live sports apps for the NBA, NFL, NHL, UFC and many others, so there may be more cool stuff on the way!)
Start thinking about your April travel schedule – Aircraft Interiors is April 14-16, 2015, Hamburg, Germany… See You There!
A Redmond ,WA. Inflight Entertainment System Company, Aircraft Cabin Systems, is looking for a Mechanical Design Engineer to manage and assist in the development of straightforward designs for commercial and business aviation video installation for video monitors and assemblies, as experience will be a strong consideration for the prospective candidate. 3D drawing capability is required. Knowledge of FAA mechanical in-cabin requirements and specifications will be useful in this position. Other duties will be involved in this job opportunity such as the design of the mechanical hardware needed inside video display products. Actual aviation industry experience is desirable, but not a prerequisite, for the position. Interested individuals should contact Yukio Sugimoto (sugimotoy@aircraftcabinsystems.com) for more information.
- Company extends its DivX OmniView™ product suite to enable in-flight secure premium content on passenger devices
San Diego, CA | February 5, 2015– DivX, LLC, a leading provider of next-generation digital video technologies, today announced the launch of its secure, In-Flight Entertainment (IFE) solution. An extension to DivX® OmniView™, the new solution enables airlines and aircraft manufacturers to differentiate their in-flight entertainment experience and reduce costs.
The DivX OmniView solution for OTT video delivery includes video encoding and packaging, studio-approved DivX DRM technology and secure players for multiple devices and platforms including iOS, Android, Smart TVs, set-top boxes and PCs. With the DivX OmniView solution on board, airlines will be able to offer passengers secure video on phones, tablets and PCs in-flight, with our without a connection to ground internet.
Offering flexibility and convenience for passengers who are already bringing aboard their mobile devices, Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) services are gaining over traditional seat-back entertainment systems that are expensive to implement, costly to transport, and require additional, often specialized maintenance. The new capability brings the advanced DivX video playback and DivX DRM for secure delivery to multiple screens, even in aircraft without an on-board Internet connection.
“The new in-flight entertainment capability of the DivX® OmniView™ solution furthers the DivX brand promise of delivering a better video experience across multiple screens. DivX is already delivering that experience at home and on the go, and now we’re extending our reach and capabilities to 30,000ft above the ground,” said DivX President and CEO Dr. Kanaan Jemili.
DivX provides an all-in-one solution for IFE system integrators that includes professional content preparation tools, DivX DRM and secure player technology across mobile devices and laptops. DivX enables consumers to enjoy a differentiated video experience featuring smooth trick play and multi-language audio and subtitles tracks. With the disconnected DivX DRM licensing server in place, a public Internet connection is not required to securely stream video content during flight. Airlines stand to benefit from lower operating costs and by offering a differentiated consumer experience, complete with advanced media playback accessible across a broad range of devices.
Inflight connectivity is about getting data to and from a passenger’s laptop, or getting their voice to the right ear, wherever that might be. The technology behind it may not be interesting to passengers, but it is technological developments, such as TriaGnoSys’ new GSM roaming solution, that drive increased efficiencies, reduce costs and thereby enable airlines to offer more connectivity to more people.”
