JetBlue TrueBlue - BetaBlue Expansion?

Has there been any word recently on JetBlue expanding BetaBlue to be fleet-wide? Now that CO is getting LiveTV (a better system that JetBlue's, as well), Delta has PTVs and Wifi, AA has Wifi, and Virgin has PTVs and Wifi, the allure of seatback TVs (especially on transcon JFK routes) is starting to disappear. I know a long time ago they said they would "look in to it", but if they don't start introducing WiFi fleet-wide, they are going to find themselves behind in the game very quickly.

Thoughts?

I haven't flown JetBlue in a while, but they didn't seem to attract the type of people who would be willing to pay $12 for a couple hours of internet. The legacies all claim to offer those services, but as much as I fly Delta I rarely get a plane with the PTVs domestically and I haven't had a plane with wifi yet.

I like not having to know exactly what type of plane jetblue is flying like you do with the others to determine what amenities there will be. On Delta there are threads about how to read the seatmap to determine if there will be PTVs, but Wifi is hit or miss.

If jetblue really wants to keep ahead of the curve they should implement free wifi!

I haven't flown JetBlue in a while, but they didn't seem to attract the type of people who would be willing to pay $12 for a couple hours of internet. The legacies all claim to offer those services, but as much as I fly Delta I rarely get a plane with the PTVs domestically and I haven't had a plane with wifi yet.

I like not having to know exactly what type of plane jetblue is flying like you do with the others to determine what amenities there will be. On Delta there are threads about how to read the seatmap to determine if there will be PTVs, but Wifi is hit or miss.

If jetblue really wants to keep ahead of the curve they should implement free wifi!

Right now, BetaBlue is free, but only limited services (email, IM, and a select few websites, I think) are available.

Delta, from my knowledge, is in the midst of equipping Wifi fleetwide. I think the MD-88s (which compose a large part of their fleet) are almost entirely WiFi now, and most 738 transcons on Delta, barring a type change, have PTVs. I think the big reason there is so much confusion over Delta amenities is that they are changing everything right now.

On top of that, I know that if I fly AA JFK-LAX, I will get a plane with WiFi. I can't say the same for JetBlue. If I fly JFK-BUR/LGB, there is a 1/150 or so chance I will get WiFi...those odds need to be higher.

THe GoGo wi-fi on AA is awesome, totally worth the $10 bucks on a transcon, Jetblue can't continue to say they offer email in-flight with one plane, it's like hitting the lottery if you are lucky have BetaBlue routed on your flight.

They need to make a decision and start implementing it fleet-wide, then maybe they would get a bump in passengers because of it. Maybe they have already began the installations and when they have a good percentage equipped they can put out the press release. Again, cash is king and it might be prudent to wait until the economy improves.

The gogo service (DL/AA/UA/VX) and the Row44 service (AS/WN) are wildly different than the KiteLine service that LiveTV offers. The latter is severely limited in terms of what functionality is made available, mostly because they have limited spectrum to connect between planes and their base stations (gogo) or satellites (Row44).

When CO announced that they were going with LiveTV for their domestic fleet they also mentioned that KiteLine would be included in the offering. Back in February they noted that, while the LiveTV deployment was moving forward, the KiteLine service would be delayed until Q3/Q4 '09 before anything would be seen on planes, but that it would still be free when it is deployed.

Based on those two bits of data I'd guess that we will not see any additional KiteLine deployments - on B6 or CO - until later in the year, and that it will continue to be free when it is deployed.

And gogo is $13 on a transcon unless you've got a discount code. I'm not completely convinced that it is worthwhile, especially if there is no in-seat power such that a laptop only lasts a couple hours on the flight. I used it on a recent DL flight and was not wowed by it (http://www.wanderingaramean.com/2009/03/wi-fi-onboard.html). It is neat, but I had some performance issues at one point and just don't think it is worth the cost in most cases, especially if one is flying a lot. That can add up at $10-13/instance quite quickly.

http://crankyflier.com/2009/03/31/across-the-aisle-from-jetblue-ceo-dave-barger-part-2-wi-fi-trueblue-changes-and-international-partners/


From Dave's interview, narrowband is coming fleet-wide, key here is free.

They may go full wi-fi if conditions warrant, but clearly they don't want to add another fee to the passenger.

http://crankyflier.com/2009/03/31/across-the-aisle-from-jetblue-ceo-dave-barger-part-2-wi-fi-trueblue-changes-and-international-partners/


From Dave's interview, narrowband is coming fleet-wide, key here is free.

They may go full wi-fi if conditions warrant, but clearly they don't want to add another fee to the passenger.

That is the KiteLine product. It still isn't ready for fleet-wide deployment, which is why it hasn't happened yet. The EoY target is not out of the realm of possibility, but it largely depends on LiveTV getting it functional and scalable to support a few hundred airplanes using the service rather than just one.