Inflight Wi-Fi provider (Gogo) has discontinued its deal to provide roaming Internet access for customers of Boingo airport Wi-Fi, announced in a notice sent to Boingo customers yesterday. In the past, users of Boingo could log on to Gogo with the same password. The company said to it’s customers; “Because you’re a loyal Boingo user who has logged in to the inflight Wi-Fi services provided by our partner Gogo, we thought it was important to let you know that effective June 1, that will no longer be possible.” As an“ease of service deal” only, we suspect more is going on here. The note from Boingo went on: “We’d like to apologize for this change, since we know our customers really appreciated this convenience.” Boingo and Gogo inked a deal in 2011 and Gogo has “opted not to renew its roaming contract with Boingo.” The airport Wi-Fi service provider noted that it still has roaming agreements with Deutsche Telekom, for access on international flights who services nine other international airlines and we were wondering if this cancellation was a notice to the industry that Gogo might be heading in another direction – Airport Wi-Fi? It makes a lot of sense since a ground application at the airport – both before takeoff and upon landing – it could usher in a new line of service and revenue for Gogo… but that is just a guess on our part. Stay Tuned!

Here are a couple news notes from Global Eagle – “IFE Services, a subsidiary of Global Eagle Entertainment (NASDAQ:ENT), announced today that it has developed Iberia’s new inflight entertainment (IFE) content app. Called ‘IberiaOnBoard’, the freely downloadable app allows travellers to check out all of the IFE content available to them on their upcoming Iberia flights. Every movie and TV show is listed by genre and has a trailer with accompanying useful information including synopsis, cast, director, rating, duration and language availability. Music album information lists tracks and their times. A special Kids’ section showcases all of the specially selected children’s content on offer inflight. Mobile app development is just one of many new products Global Eagle Entertainment has introduced to the airline industry recently as the world’s leading inflight entertainment content and connectivity provider continues its focus to innovate on behalf of clients.” And the second “Global Eagle Entertainment Inc. (Nasdaq: ENT) announced today that its subsidiary IFP has entered into a multi-year agreement with Etihad Airways to provide inflight entertainment (IFE) content programming across its entire fleet, as well as to its partner airlines Air Serbia and Air Seychelles. Starting this quarter, IFP will provide a rich and varied program of regional and international content including popular movies, TV shows and audio programming to support the airline’s world-renowned guest experience. “We’re thrilled to have been selected by Etihad Airways for its content services,” added Walé Adepoju, Executive Vice President of Customer Solutions for Global Eagle Entertainment. (Editor’s Note: Strangely, the market has reacted negatively – “Global Eagle Acquisition Corp (NASDAQ:ENT) takes the last spot on today’s list of midday losers. Its price dropped -8.27% even after the announcement that its subsidiary IPF has entered into a multi-year agreement with Etihad Airways to provide inflight entertainment and content programming. In Soros’ investment portfolio since March 2013, ENT’s price has fallen -23.87% YTD,” noted Motley Fool.)

On another note, BE Aerospace just purchased EMTEQ, the LED lighting company who has a large investment in replacement lighting. The very profitable BEA has quite a business in the Boeing Sky Interior and we suspect they may be looking to garner more retrofit LED lighting work. The deals come about a month after B/E said it may be putting itself up for sale as part of “exploring and evaluating” its strategic alternatives. “Demand for comprehensive and integrated solutions for power management, lighting and connectivity within the aircraft cabin is growing,” Amin Khoury, B/E’s chairman and co-chief executive, said in a statement. ”The combination of our lighting and power management systems business with EMTEQ’s highly complementary lighting, cabin management and power systems businesses, as well as their electrical and connectivity expertise, will allow us to expand our product and service offerings in the commercial airliner and business jet markets.”

If you have been wondering why we have been covering the real-time aircraft inflight positioning brouhaha it is because there are a lot of potential links between inflight entertainment hardware (severs for example), and the connectivity platforms and data acquisitions that serve them. Yes, we are out on a limb here but we have been talking to a number of companies, new and some presently in the IFE business, who feel that there is a need to get this job done. While some see the potential of revenues based on position acquisition, weather, system data, and performance information, if data connections to the ground are established, it might fulfill an age-old discussion that claimed that the aircraft is the last remaining un-served node on the airline network. As it turns out, there is some compatibility. A good example is Panasonic’s FlightLink. Compatible or not, companies in our industry are racing to get in the business (or related industries) by acquisition, developing new services, and is some cases, new start-ups. This brings us to a “Stay Tuned” note for an upcoming article on Wisscom. You probably never heard of them but you might in the near future.

Now, while still on the previous subject, IATA Chief, Tony Tyler, in a recent speech referring to safety challenges, said the loss of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 pointed to an immediate need. “A large commercial airliner going missing without a trace for so long is unprecedented in modern aviation. It must not happen again. IATA, ICAO and experts from around the world are working together to identify the best recommendations for improved global tracking. By September, we will deliver draft options to ICAO,” he said. Watch this one.

Recently, an IATA news release noted the following: “The International Air Transport Association (IATA) predicts the global airline industry will generate $18 billion in profits this year, but far from being a cause for cause for celebration, Director General Tony Tyler called this forecast a “challenge.” “The brutal economic reality is that on revenues of $746 billion, we will earn an average net margin of 2.4%,” Tyler said June 2 at the IATA Annual General Meeting in Doha, Qatar. “That’s less than $6 per passenger.” Tyler noted profits are improving, and the average return on invested capital (ROIC) today is 5.4%, higher than it has historically been, but that is short of what he said is the 7-8% ROIC investors demand.” We wonder if future IFE sales have fallout from this development, but it certainly explains the drive for ancillary revenue. Interestingly AIER noted in February 2014, commercial airlines—the buyers of commercial aircraft, the transportation sector’s third major component—hit a new record high in their revenue passenger load factor (the ratio of revenue passenger miles divided by available seat miles in passenger services, a measure of the portion of aircraft seating capacity that is actually sold and utilized).”

A recent article in a communication weekly noted “Rumors have been rampant over recent months regarding Google’s satellite ambitions, which are tied to a desire to increase its information-gathering prowess (think Google Earth and Google Street View) as well as an effort to extend wireless broadband services worldwide and, thus, create a larger market for its other Internet-based products, including search, YouTube and more.” Further, we understand Facebook is also eyeing a similar solution for worldwide social media domination. FierceTech Wireless went on; “I would expect the (Google) constellation to be launched in two phases, with the higher altitude satellites providing complete global coverage, and the lower satellites being added later, in between the initial nine planes, to provide additional capacity. It also seems likely that the system could include inter-satellite crosslinks (within each of the two halves of the constellation) given the near polar orbit that is planned,” he wrote in a blog on his TMF Associates website.” You note, nothing was mentioned about inflight connectivity but watch this space.

We found a very quick synopsis on inflight Wi-Fi installations/pricing – Check it out. And speaking of inflight Wi-Fi, here is a pretty good primer on the subject.

It looks like UAL has selected to use iOS for their content distribution – United Airlines updates iOS app to support exclusive, free in-flight video content

If you plan to go to the APEX EXPO in September (15 – 18) here is your first notice from IFExpress – Registration

The big news this week is the Thales deal to purchase LiveTV and you can read it here. We found another blog reporter who had some interesting things to say about the deal. (Editors Note: In the past the folks at LiveTV have focused on the US, given their JetBlue customer. However, their plan for global reach has been one of Ku-band IPTV. They do have Ka-band capability in the HTS region that has a Ku overlay. With Thales, they now have the Inmarsat option that might change the order of things. Either way, they will be getting a new super-salesman, Mike Moeller… and we sure hope they keep those award winning trade show booths coming!)

2014 Crystal Cabin Award finalists announced

The finalists for the 2014 Crystal Cabin Awards have been announced, following deliberations by the 24-strong international judging panel, which includes representatives from airlines and all the major aircraft manufacturers, as they examined each of the 55 shortlisted entries from 12 countries. (Apologies to AIX/Reed for reformatting their release!)

• Passenger Comfort Systems category include

The acWAP from Lufthansa Technik, is a high-speed router that makes data-intensive applications such as online games possible.

Armstrong Aerospace’s PowerBox, a mobile power point module that can be installed under a seat was announced.

Zodiac Aerospace’s ISIS Aft Complex, which puts the toilet and galley modules side-by-side on the rear wall, to add 3ft to the cabin length.

• Industrial Design & Visionary Concepts

US finalist B/E Aerospace took a similar approach to win a place with its Advanced Lavatory, a slimline toilet module which makes it possible to integrate up to six additional seats in an aircraft.

Zodiac’s Halo First Class design study, which is a lounge-like suite.

Also included was French seat maker Expliseat’s lightweight titanium seat.

• Greener Cabin, Health, Safety & Environment

German finalist Diehl Aerospace has developed DACAPO, a power saving, self-sufficient cabin system using rechargeable and replaceable battery trolleys.

Vision Systems has reached the final round with the Energia aircraft window in which a transparent photovoltaic film inserted into the pane simultaneously “harvests” solar energy and makes it possible to dim the window at the press of a button.

Zodiac enters the fray with another product in the ISIS range: the Modular Lavatory, which facilitates resource-friendly customization and substitution of individual bathroom and lavatory modules.

• Passenger Comfort Hardware

The hygienic toilet developed by Diehl Comfort System is operated using movement sensors, requiring no contact.

The other finalists in the category are Recaro’s ergonomic, lightweight CL3710 economy seat with extra knee room.

ZIM Flugsitz’s EC-00 economy seat for short and medium-haul flights, including a new table and backrest concept was included.

• The Premium Class & VIP

Thales’ Immersive Business Class Seat was included.

Hong Kong-based Paperclip Design’s Convertible Long Haul Seat Concept, which can be quickly converted from premium economy to a full-flat business seat.

Zodiac Aerospac’s Premium Cabin, which not only creates more space for every passenger but also even allows room for an on-board bar.

• Material & Components

Zodiac Galleys impressed the judging panel with an airbag system for front-row passengers.

Specialist Aviation’s Satto solution for minor repairs to cabin components.

Schott’s lightweight glass structure for windows, which is not only more resistant than conventional window plastic but also making significantly larger panes possible.

• University

Two entrants from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands have reached the final, with Sense the Transitions, an innovative geotainment concept; and the ARC Seat Concept, an aircraft seat that can withstand stresses up to 16g.

Monash University in Australia is showing a concept for wheelchair boarding.

The finalists’ products and concepts will be presented in the Crystal Cabin Award Gallery at Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg, Germany next month (Hall B1, Booth A41), and on the second day of the exhibition (9 April, 11am), the winners will present their concepts to the public.

OMG!

The IFExpress team has purposely avoided any updates of MH370 until we saw this article on Sunday that mentioned IFE – you have to read it… we were dumbstruck!

Beacon technology has been hailed as a game-changer in retail. It uses Bluetooth to trigger the display of information on phones and tablets that is relevant to the specific location and context of the user. Connecting and communicating efficiently with passengers throughout their journey is a widely held goal in the air transport industry and SITA Lab’s research has investigated the potential of using beacon technology in today’s airports. The benefits being touted for the technology, such as low cost and wide range, have a strong appeal for anyone wanting to connect directly with customers. But SITA Lab investigated if the technology works as advertized in the real world. Trials with a leading international airline and airport have produced results that are both promising and cautionary. SITA ’s CTO, Jim Peters noted; “SITA Lab is currently building an industry registry for all beacons. The goal is that any airline will have a single point of contact to go to use any beacon deployed by airports around the world. We are already working with some early adopters but are looking for other airports, airlines and app developers who are interested in leveraging the potential of beacons in the air transport industry to join the project.”

Editors Note: To get a bit more background on this exploding technology, here is a blurb from the Radius Network website about their Apple-based solution: “iBeacons are transmit only. They do not receive or collect any signals from mobile devices. iBeacons don’t detect the presence of your mobile device and therefore have no ability to know you are near or track your location. The bottom line, iBeacons are inherently privacy friendly. You can see them, but they can’t see you. With iBeacon technology, your mobile device is actually what detects the iBeacons. More specifically, an app installed on the mobile device can ask to be notified when the device sees a specific iBeacon. This works very similar to how geofences work when a mobile device crosses into a specific geographic location. Keep in mind that in order for a mobile device to detect and react to an iBeacon, an app MUST reside on the device and have requested the specific iBeacon identifiers it is interested in. The benefit of this approach is that it gives the user ultimate control. If a user does not want to interact with iBeacons, he or she can opt-out by not allowing the app to use location services (iOS), turning Bluetooth off, or uninstalling the app on their phone.” Think GPS when using iBeacons, and we also note, that there are already some 100 apps for iBeacons in the Apple iTunes store today. Android developers are spooling up as well. The underlying technology is Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) based and the rechargeable transmitter units are about the size of a mint tin that can run for days without a charge. If you want to build your own iBeacon application, check out the Travel Radar App in the iTunes App Store, put an iBeacon in your bag, and find your luggage before someone else does!

ALERTS!

• We just heard that Aircraft Cabin Systems recently was granted and registered a patent for their new retractable monitor that features a charged capacitor retract solution!
• Watch for Telefonix get more into Connectivity with the addition of Jim Costello to their staff!
• If you are looking for an Electrical or Electro-Mechanical engineering job opportunity in the greater Seattle area (Kirkland/Redmond WA), we will send you contact information by email. Send a note to plwiseman@gmail.com and mark your email “Jobs” in the subject heading, the rest is up to you