How do BizElite movies work?
 

Okay, I've never been on a Delta transatlantic flight, so I'm wondering how the movies work.

I answer half of my questions through this thread:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum21/HTML/000920.html

That gave me enough pointers to figure out where the list of movies is. Now, I go there and I see 2 cycles of 5 movies each. Are these really cycles? Do they just play out in a loop over two different channels, and you join in progress on whatever movie happens to be playing?

Or do they pick one of the cycles to put on your plane (east-bound/west-bound maybe?) and you can pick any of the 5 movies in there to watch?

Someone enlighten me. :-)

There are two cycles. Normally they start with cycle A. When it completes (in about 2 hours), they start cycle B. Then back to cycle A if the flight is long enough. On the Tokyo flights, they go through each cycle as many as 3 times. And (minor point)the number of channels is eight, not five, plus the "airshow" (moving map).

Bruce

Also, one of the video channels is "Premiere Cinema". I always experienced very recent films there - e.g. Charlie's Angels or Thirteen Days before those movies were avaiable on DVD. The selection is pretty good.

The entertainment system (called Delta Horizons) has a main menu from which you can choose the following:

--video entertainment
--audio entertainment
--games
--AirShow (moving map showing your location, and facts such as wind speed, time to destination, etc.)

At Video Entertainment, there are generally eight channels (if I recall correctly). One of the channels is the main cabin progamming (what is on the big screens in coach). One is the AirShow. The rest are the BusinessElite channels. Each channel has two cycles. They will play the entire first cycle first. Once that is completed, they will play the entire second cycle. If time remains, they will repeat the entire first cycle. If there is still more time, they will replay the second cycle. There will be a 15 minute intermission between each cycle. Each cycle (A and B -- first and second) has different programming for each of the five main channels. Most of the channels have a movie and a short feature (sitcom, CNN IN-Flight, etc.), while some have a number of short features.

Of course this is assuming the lead FA knows how to work the system and keeps switching the cycle tapes or whatever.

Last couple of flights I was on, the main cabin video was "synched" to the B.E. programming (the movie started at the exact same time as the Cycle A films). This is nice, so if you want to watch the main cabin feature, you don't have to miss 2 cycles of the B.E. programming.

Oh, okay, let me make sure I have this straight. When they first start showing the entertaininment, I can watch any one of the Cycle A movies. And then after that's done, and the intermission, I can watch any one of the Cycle B movies. I assume they bulk up the shorter movies with some extra shorts. That sound right?

Yes, there is a bit over 2 hours programming on each channel on each cycle --a movie and a short (or series of shorts). Still, they don't all end at the same time. There is normally a break before the next cycle is started.

As a general rule in the movie business, airlines get access to recent titles much earlier than the video/dvd release of the same title.