Airlines to Offer In-Flight Internet Service

Ponca City, We Love You writes "JetBlue Airways will soon begin testing a free e-mail and instant messaging service on one aircraft, while American Airlines, Virgin America and Alaska Airlines plan to offer a broader Web experience in the coming months, probably priced at about $10 a flight. A recent survey found that 26 percent of leisure travelers would pay $10 for Internet access on a two-to-four-hour flight and 45 percent would pay that amount for a flight longer than four hours. The airlines plans to turn their planes into the equivalent of a wireless hot spot once the aircraft reaches its cruising altitude but service will not be available on takeoff and landing. While the technology could allow travelers to make phone calls over the Internet, most carriers say they have no plans to allow voice communications."

Comments

Worst nightmare

[wombatmobile]

FTA: "Many travelers find the prospect of phone calls much less palatable than having a seatmate quietly browsing e-mail."

Yes. Imagine sitting in the center seat between two obese passengers talking non-stop about things you don't want to know about.

What would you do?

What could you possibly do at that point?

Re:Worst nightmare

[kidgenius]

A couple of differences, one being is that during a face to face conversation, you tend to not talk extremely loud. Some phones incorporate a slight "echo" so that you can actually hear yourself talking (much like landlines). Many phones don't, and what ends up happening is people yell into the phone, which is exactly what Alexander Graham Bell discovered when he first invented the thing. Additionally, we perceive face-to-face conversations as normal. Cellphone conversations are just weird to us humans (being a relatively new thing). Also, and perhaps slightly more nosy, people like to listen to other people's conversations, and when you can only hear one half of the conversation, it probably annoys people on some unconscious level. It's just programmed into us that communication exists face-to-face, or at least that's how it primarily has been for eons.

Re:Worst nightmare

[frenchbedroom]

Someone will likely bring out a study that concludes that your brain interprets one-sided conversations differently than if you hear both sides of the conversation.

That, and the fact that phone conversations are extremely phatic by nature. Not only do you get much less than 100% of the information, but most of the babble that's going on isn't information at all, which to you will gradually translate from a mild irritation at such a boring stream of uninteresting yakking, to eventually snatching the annoyer's cellphone, shoving it down his f*ck*n throat, and uppercutting him with superb, glorious, healing might.

Re:No Voice?

[Opportunist]

By plugging ports and shaping traffic?

It's likely that they'll do what they can to avoid having someone transmit large amounts of data through a presumably quite expensive link.

Very well

[joaommp]

It would be nice for long courses. But I do not believe not many people will really be using it except netmaniacs that spend 12+hour daily on the net (like me) or business people who need to be constanly online (oh... like me too). Other people will rather take a nap and not even bother turning the laptop on.

What about connection speeds? Data limits? Which satellites? Connection stability?

The Internet is the second most important feature.

[dada21]

...but I need a power source. I usually travel with my "lite" laptop, and a spare battery, but even that's not always enough. Some of my flights (ORD->BOM) last nearly 20 hours (with 1 stop, where I could theoretically recharge somewhere).

I don't mind paying upwards of $40 for a flight for web access, actually, but I'd assume few others would. Speed/latency isn't an issue, but I do wonder how well it would work over large bodies of water.

Re:No Voice?

[rootofevil]

likeohmygodnowaydidhereallyjustsaythat?

youve got to be kidding me. there is absolutely no reason i need to hear the person i am wedged next to talking about the CUTEST thing his daugther did the other day. flying is unenjoyable enough without sitting through a conversation with my seat neighbors aunt tillie about the smallest little bullshit details in his life because they are so bored they dont have anything else to do.

even worse would be a teenage girl (or a 30-something who wishes she was a teenage girl) and all the vapid crap they find interesting. im not sure i could turn up the volume enough on whatever it is im trying to distract myself with to drown that out. not to mention the cabin noise which would make them have to yell all the louder.

there isnt a person flying on any flight i would take that is so incredibly important that they cant be cut off for 4 hours. 4 hours! get a grip, be quiet, and stop reclining your seat. thanks.

in summary: it would bother me that much.