Originally Posted by
Baze
Tablets and personal entertainment devices are not as prevalent as some here seem to think. I think they are going to find people don't want to pay for the streaming about as much as people do not want to pay for DirectTV.
I think UAs data on DirectTV showed them how many people were willing to pay for a selection 8 movies and a hundred or so TV shows including live sports. Not many.
Add this to the view on the domestic market that people are unwilling to pay more for a better inflight product in their base fare - free checked baggage, food, more room throughout coach (MRTC), etc, and we have the conclusion that ubiquitous in-flight entertainment is on the way out for domestic flights. The question is what's the best way to monetize something that the vast majority of your customers don't want to pay for and the rest only want if it's free but doesn't drive carrier preference.
I think wifi entertainment is going to be an interesting experiment. I don't want to accuse UA of being forward thinking but I do think they might be depending on more people having tablets and such in the future. Maybe people will even be able to buy them onboard or rent them at the airport at the soon-to-be-defunct portable DVD rental places. (do those guys exist anymore?)
Minus: the poor flight attendants will have to do the seat belt and life vest dance all the time
Plus: we don't have to see Mr. Smisek spin the truth on our video monitors