[Via Satellite 06-11-2015] As airlines grapple with ways to draw the most value from passenger connectivity, a fully free service is likely to stay out of reach for some time. In-Flight Connectivity (IFC) has turned into a boon for many satellite operators, along with other parts of the industry, but service providers cited the cost in Mbps as a reason passenger IFC may never be completely free.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe closer you are to getting down to about a penny per megabyte, the more you can offer for free. Anything north of that I think it is going to be very difficult for airlines to make a business case to offer it for free. It\u2019s really more of a cost and bandwidth equation and, frankly, today we are just not there yet as an industry,\u201d Duc Huy Tran, VP of strategy and marketing of In Flight Entertainment and Connectivity (IFEC) at Thales Live TV<\/b>, said June 10 at the Global Connected Aircraft Summit.<\/p>\n
Aditya Chatterjee, CTO and SVP of engineering at Global Eagle Entertainment <\/b>(GEE), estimated that the cost per megabyte has come down from roughly $0.07 each to about $0.02 to $0.03 today. Panelists largely agreed that, while predicting business models for IFC is nearly impossible, services are likely to split between high bandwidth and low bandwidth, with airlines setting up pay walls around services such as video in order to optimize their use of capacity from satellites and Air-to-Ground (ATG) networks.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we can provide value added services, whether it\u2019s streaming or other things for the right price to those who want to do more. I believe that\u2019s the way industry will go for a while. We will see some offering it for free for limited amounts of data and then for a more rich experience there will be a pay-per-use kind of model,\u201d said Greg Montevideo, senior director of global communications services at Panasonic Avionics<\/b>.<\/p>\n
Panelists pointed to equipment available as the key variable for whether or not the \u201cfree\u201d cost equation balances out. Many IFC service providers and satellite operators are teaming up with antenna manufacturers and other companies to provide tailored solutions for airlines. The past 12 months alone have seen numerous linkups \u2014 Panasonic partnered with Boeing<\/b>, GEE with QEST<\/b>, Inmarsat <\/b>with Kymeta<\/b> <\/b>and Intelsat with Phasor<\/b> \u2014 all to design and produce antennas optimized for IFC. And several satellite operators at the GCA Summit stated publically that demand from the aeronautical vertical is increasingly influencing as they design next generation spacecraft.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe answer in the long run for free or charged is really going to be the technology that we can bring and the efficiency of that technology,\u201d explained Richard Nordstron, senior director, global marketing air transport cabin solutions at Rockwell Collins<\/b>. \u201cThat\u2019s where we are focusing right now, especially with new types of antennas and new constellations that are going up. We\u2019re not there, but we are heading in that direction.\u201d<\/p>\n
David Gelerman, CEO of Advantech Wireless<\/b>, highlighted the increasing importance of software as a key differentiator that will likely have a major impact on IFC satellite technology in the near future.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything is going in a software-defined direction,\u201d he said. \u201cSoftware defined aircraft, software defined satellites \u2014 we\u2019ve been already producing software defined radios for at least the last 10 years. In the future, [Very Small Aperture Terminal] VSAT modems to be used on aircraft will also use software-defined radios.\u201d<\/p>\n
Panelists agreed that, like guessing IFC business plans, designing truly \u201cfuture-proof\u201d technology is also not an exact science. Chatterjee said future-proofing has to be integral for any service provider, given the demanding amount of time it takes to fit aircraft with IFC systems, but admitted it is nearly impossible to satisfy the unknown demands five to 10 years out. Still, with IFC adoption growing at a fast clip, even if the technology needs of future years remain out in the offing of today\u2019s Research and Development (R&D) efforts, service providers are confident IFC equipment will be in high demand.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne thing is certain: I think within the next five years connectivity is going to be universal,\u201d said Tran.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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