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Cathay mulls removal of seat back TVs

Cathay mulls removal of seat back TVs

Old Jun 15, 2012, 3:30 am
  #16  
 
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I see the problem of CX now: it's top-down starting with John Slosar. The instance he heard of this idea he should of said: "Are you crazy or just dumb?" iPad's are popular? Maybe to a very young age group in particular countries. PTV demand isn't there? I must be dreaming everytime I fly CX and all the pax are tuning in to the IFE. The burden is on me to entertain myself now on a flight that easily costs between $1500-$2000 USD nowadays? This ridiculous desire to cut fuel per flight is starting to make CX into a ridiculous airline. Go ahead CX, make the move, I'm hopping over to SQ/*A faster than a speeding bullet.
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Old Jun 15, 2012, 3:42 am
  #17  
 
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Originally Posted by Cathay Boy
I see the problem of CX now: it's top-down starting with John Slosar. The instance he heard of this idea he should of said: "Are you crazy or just dumb?" iPad's are popular? Maybe to a very young age group in particular countries. PTV demand isn't there? I must be dreaming everytime I fly CX and all the pax are tuning in to the IFE. The burden is on me to entertain myself now on a flight that easily costs between $1500-$2000 USD nowadays? This ridiculous desire to cut fuel per flight is starting to make CX into a ridiculous airline. Go ahead CX, make the move, I'm hopping over to SQ/*A faster than a speeding bullet.
Hold on a minute Slosar said they were considering it and MAY go on with it in 6 years time. He was just considering it

I agree removing ptv's is a bad idea almost everyone even those with ipads use them.

Also it is interesting how advocates of Jetstar Hong Kong in an already over competitive Hong Kong market now hate this decision. I would not be suprised if Cathay implemented a lot more cost cutting measures in the name of fuel and the environment- they need to stay sustainable as a business
And Cathay Has a Strong desire to be the only Major airline in Hong Kong
At least they are looking at options so that they can maintain their market share unlike the silly Singapore airlines whose position in Singapore is no where near Cathay's position in Hong Kong currently!!

Well I hope Cathay stays in its dominant position in Hong Kong and with the way it already competes with lowcost airlines and is still the dominant airline on those routes I think it has a strong future.

I wonder if they will create a fifth "low cost Cabin " on all flights (343 on 777 with lower pitch , thinner seats,no ptv"
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Old Jun 15, 2012, 4:27 am
  #18  
 
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Originally Posted by Kachjc
Hold on a minute Slosar said they were considering it and MAY go on with it in 6 years time. He was just considering it
Well some people simply don't consider the context of this comment. It was made at an IATA conference where those executives discuss future possible trends in commercial aviation. There are hundreds of obstacles to overcome before it could become reality (e.g. adequate inflight power supply to tablets, safety issues, availability of internet connection).

And it also comes down to competition. If SQ, EK etc. continues to provide free IFE (in whatever form, seatback TV or tablets), there's no way CX, as a premium airline, will remove it.
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Old Jun 15, 2012, 8:39 am
  #19  
 
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i agree about the cost of content point. i would not likely buy any content to only watch movies once. on my trip between HKG-YYZ i watched 11 movies...none of which I would likely watch again. so to pay to load my ipad with that content, although last i checked, ipads are a total an complete rip off for basically a battery, hard drive, graphics chip and a touch screen....and a locked operating system that you have to jailbreak to have it do anything that apple could not spend three cents coding...so buying crap on it is a waste...sure, some people will download what ever they want and that is fine...

i think this is a bad idea. it really sounds like something a US legacy or AC would do.. or consider...
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Old Jun 15, 2012, 9:06 am
  #20  
 
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Originally Posted by mkjr
i agree about the cost of content point. i would not likely buy any content to only watch movies once. on my trip between HKG-YYZ i watched 11 movies...none of which I would likely watch again. so to pay to load my ipad with that content, although last i checked, ipads are a total an complete rip off for basically a battery, hard drive, graphics chip and a touch screen....and a locked operating system that you have to jailbreak to have it do anything that apple could not spend three cents coding...so buying crap on it is a waste...sure, some people will download what ever they want and that is fine...

i think this is a bad idea. it really sounds like something a US legacy or AC would do.. or consider...
With seeing a number of other moves CX has done in the last little while, I have a feeling that the PTVs will be with Cathay a lot longer then Mr Slosar!!!
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Old Jun 15, 2012, 10:57 am
  #21  
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It's just an idea that was thrown in during the IATA AGM. This doesn't mean that they will do it.

Airbus wanted to develop A380F but look where it ended up!
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Old Jun 15, 2012, 11:34 am
  #22  
 
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Originally Posted by mkjr
i agree about the cost of content point. i would not likely buy any content to only watch movies once. on my trip between HKG-YYZ i watched 11 movies...none of which I would likely watch again. so to pay to load my ipad with that content, although last i checked, ipads are a total an complete rip off for basically a battery, hard drive, graphics chip and a touch screen....and a locked operating system that you have to jailbreak to have it do anything that apple could not spend three cents coding...so buying crap on it is a waste...sure, some people will download what ever they want and that is fine...

i think this is a bad idea. it really sounds like something a US legacy or AC would do.. or consider...
You can rent movies as well, for the sort of price you would at a DVD rental store.

Have you ever used an iPad? I was slightly cynical until I bought one. It is now my most-used item of consumer electronics by far. And if you really can't stand Apple there are plenty of other tablets on the market.

Neil
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Old Jun 15, 2012, 12:15 pm
  #23  
 
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Originally Posted by pacer142
You can rent movies as well, for the sort of price you would at a DVD rental store.

Have you ever used an iPad? I was slightly cynical until I bought one. It is now my most-used item of consumer electronics by far. And if you really can't stand Apple there are plenty of other tablets on the market.

Neil
yes, i have an ipad but prefer several other makers of tablets - i have a sammy and a HP touchad and BB tab. my 5 year old uses the ipad. i use it for web surfing and streaming nextflix while on vacation. i actually use my HP touchpad more often to stream flash...[and my touchpad runs android...so i know a little bit about something...]
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Old Jun 15, 2012, 8:57 pm
  #24  
 
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Originally Posted by mkjr
yes, i have an ipad but prefer several other makers of tablets - i have a sammy and a HP touchad and BB tab. my 5 year old uses the ipad. i use it for web surfing and streaming nextflix while on vacation. i actually use my HP touchpad more often to stream flash...[and my touchpad runs android...so i know a little bit about something...]
The iPad is ideal for those who know a lot less, though. I hate electronics but I love my birthday present iPad. I would not have purchased it myself, to be honest.

But I don't want to have to use it for 10 hours in a row - I would rather have a tv screen mounted in position right in front of me.
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Old Jun 15, 2012, 10:48 pm
  #25  
 
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Perhaps iPad based wireless inflight entertainment systems are the way going forward. You can load as much or more content, and there would be significant fuel savings from having an iPad for each seat as opposed to a bulky built-in entertainment system. This leads to lower maintenance costs also which should result in lower fares or the sustainability of a larger network to more destinations.

Conventional seat-back TV or iPad - as long as the content is the same, what difference does it make?
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Old Jun 16, 2012, 4:18 am
  #26  
 
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the ipad may be nice but faced with the hassle of picking a set of movies and tv programmes, downloading or burning them from DVD's (which may or may not be a contrevention of various IP laws) I know I would rather fly an airline that had IFE.

I think I actually watch the bulk of my TV consumption on CX!
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Old Jun 16, 2012, 5:03 am
  #27  
 
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Wirelessly posted (iPhone 4: Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; U; Android 2.3.6; en-us; GT-I9210 Build/GINGERBREAD) AppleWebKit/533.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile Safari/533.1)

Acgually i have no problem for a seat back mounted tablet. Give me any IFE that is more responsive than the current one i am a happy camper.

Not to mention the current LCD monitor is about the same size.
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Old Jun 16, 2012, 9:36 am
  #28  
 
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Cathay is NOT removing PTVs anytime soon, Slosar was simply stating that in 6-7 years PTVs may become obsolete with the tablet movement, don't worry.
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Old Jun 16, 2012, 12:28 pm
  #29  
 
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Originally Posted by Platinum A332
Perhaps iPad based wireless inflight entertainment systems are the way going forward. You can load as much or more content, and there would be significant fuel savings from having an iPad for each seat as opposed to a bulky built-in entertainment system. This leads to lower maintenance costs also which should result in lower fares or the sustainability of a larger network to more destinations.

Conventional seat-back TV or iPad - as long as the content is the same, what difference does it make?
What if someone oops and drops the tablet. Tracking who is handling back the unit after each flight, testing, resetting, servicing and cleaning them for health reason will be more costly and a nightmare logistically. Some airlines now give you the ear phones for free as it is just no worth to get it back for same reason.
Remove the IFE and PTV, reduce the fare will be a better deal option for me.
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Old Jun 16, 2012, 1:32 pm
  #30  
 
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Originally Posted by midlevels
This is one of the most absurd ideas I have heard in a long time. I will stop flying Cathay if I am expected to bring my own entertainment on flights. Honestly, they expect that before I fly I will pre load my (as yet non-existent) tablet with 10 hours of movies for my long haul flight?
The idea is actually not to force you to preload content.

There are providers now who offer systems that stream a library of content via wifi from a server on the plane itself. Not perfect yet, but in 5 years' time maybe. You'd simply turn on your tablet, access the onboard wifi network (it's local, not an internet stream), and watch to your heart's content. No need to store anything.

Wouldn't be surprised if they stocked onboard tablets for rental for a small charge.
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