One of SmartSky’s suppliers is accused of stealing the inflight connectivity company’s intellectual property and trying to sell it as an independent ATG network rather than delivering the contracted goods to the company. This one is gonna get messy, folks.
IFEC
Qatar Airways hits 100 aircraft milestone fitted with Inmarsat’s GX Aviation
Qatar Airways now operates 100 aircraft with “Super Wi-Fi,” its branding for the Inmarsat GX Aviation inflight connectivity solution. The most recent addition to the fleet is A7-ALC, an A350-900. Qatar Airways is the leading operator of the GX solution around the globe.v
OWG picks Bluebox for streaming IFE
Holiday makers on Canada’s newest airline will have movies and TV shows available on their flights to Cuba this winter. OWG, an offshoot of Nolinor, signed a deal to fly the Bluebox Wow streaming IFE kit on board.
Southwest going app-free for IFE
Watching movies and TV on Southwest Airlines is getting a little easier. The carrier’s inflight entertainment portal, powered by Global Eagle’s Airtime platform, no longer requires a dedicated mobile application for consumers to stream content on board. The DRM-protected content can instead be consumed in the web browser of the devices.
Digging in to the ATG deal between Gogo and Intelsat
With the infusion of new cash coming as part of the Intelsat deal Gogo is well-positioned to invest in its updated air-to-ground (ATG) network, branded “Gogo 5G.” And the company has high hopes for increased revenue that network will deliver, both from its Business Aviation customers and from Intelsat. The latter secured a 10-year exclusive contract to resell Gogo’s ATG connectivity to commercial airlines and the (mostly) regional jets flying with the system installed as part of the deal to acquire the Commercial Aviation business.
Intelsat to buy Gogo Commercial Aviation for $400 million
Intelsat will purchase the Commercial Aviation business from Gogo for a “headline” price of $400 million. Intelsat’s attorney’s announced the deal as part of a hearing at the US Bankruptcy Court this afternoon.
JetBlue slows service resumption plans
Eleven JetBlue destinations expected to see service resume in October per published schedules. That number now sits at four. Seven Blue Cities will have to wait at least one more month before JetBlue flights resume. The company cited an “ongoing drop in demand” and “cash preservation efforts” in announcing the decision to employees today. The […]
SkyFive makes major 5G inflight connectivity progress in China
SkyFive is betting big on inflight connectivity in China. The upstart air-to-ground (ATG) network infrastructure provider recently announced a Strategic Technology Partnership with Airbus. The partnership also includes China Mobile as the local mobile telecom provider.
Intelsat emerges as leading contender for Gogo’s Commercial Aviation business
We could learn the fate of Gogo’s Commercial Aviation (CA) business by the end of the month, assuming some details in a recent Intelsat bankruptcy filing play out. The latter filed for approval to increase its Debtor-in-Possession (DIP) funding as part of a transaction it hopes to consummate by 31 August.
Gogo tops 1,000 install milestone for AVANCE L5 biz jet wifi solution
Less than three years after the product first took flight, Gogo’s business aviation division reached the 1,000 units installed milestone on its AVANCE L5 inflight wifi connectivity solution. More than 325,000 flights have operated with the system installed since Q4 2017 when the upgraded ATG wifi system became available.