Page 18 - AAA OCTOBER - DECEMBER 2019 Online Magazine

[ IN-FLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT ]

Entertainment

on the Go

AIRLINES SEE IFE AS A KEY DIFFERENTIATOR

Atul Chandra

Airlines continue to invest in new generation In Flight Entertainment
(IFE) systems in their quest to win the hearts of the travelling cus-
tomer. The growth of high-speed WiFi is also increasing passenger
expectations with regards to their IFE experience onboard the air-
craft. It would not be out of place to say, that for many customers
today; the default expectation is to have access to a wide selection
of entertainment provided via an in-seat monitor or on their personal
devices, supported by high-speed WiFi.

In September, JetBlue selected Thales’ AVANT IFE for its sin-
gle-aisle A220-300 fleet. Deliveries of the IFE systems which will
be fitted on 70 A220-300 aircraft start next year. 253 of JetBlue’s
single aisle aircraft have been fitted with Thales’s inflight enter-
tainment and connectivity solutions. “In 2000, JetBlue set out to
disrupt the industry as the first airline to offer live TV on every
seatback, on every plane. We’re extremely proud to continue this Panasonic to the Fore
long-standing relationship with our partners at Thales, and look Indian Full Service carrier Vistara is the
forward to introducing a brand-new, custom-for-JetBlue genera- launch customer for the new Arc Inflight Map
tion of in-flight entertainment on our A220 aircraft,” says Mariya Platform and Games, developed by Panasonic
Stoyanova, director of product development, JetBlue. Every seat Avionics Corporation (Panasonic) as part of its
on JetBlue’s A220s will feature the latest 10” high definition (HD) Theatre solution. The newly-launched enter-
screens with picture-in-picture functionality, custom connected tainment solutions developed by Panasonic
applications, audio-and-video-on-demand, and personal device will be installed on Vistara’s Boeing 787-9 and
pairing to meet customer expectations. The Android-based AVANT Airbus A321neo aircraft fleet from 2020. David
system equipped with high capacity servers, locally stored content, Bartlett, Chief Technology Officer of Panasonic
and integration with the onboard connectivity systems. USB and Avionics Corporation, says: “We know that pas-
AC power will also be available for every customer to keep their sengers who are entertained and engaged in
devices fully charged. flight are happiest with their travel experience.
Arc has completely re-imagined and revolu-
tionized what an inflight map experience can
be and Games fully immerses people of all
ages inflight, reflecting the future of the pas-
senger experience. Panasonic is honored to
be working with such a forward-looking and
award-winning airline as Vistara to launch these
solutions.”

Arc is a revolutionary, personalized 3D inflight
map application and solution for Panasonic’s
inflight entertainment and connectivity (IFEC)
systems. Arc’s innovations include the indus-
try’s first personalized maps capability, new
Map-as-a-Service technology that enables the
development of applications utilizing the map
engine and feature set, premium destination

18 | October/November/December 2019 WWW .GBP .COM.SG/ AAA