Etihad Airways has experienced an 80 percent increase in Internet and mobile phone usage in 2014, thanks to its in-flight WiFi connectivity service.
Increased demand for onboard mobile services also contributed to the surge in usage, with 2.6 million devices connecting to the airline’s onboard mobile network in the same year. Inflight texts and mobile phone calls increased by 62 percent and 61 percent respectively, compared to the same period in 2013.
iOS was the most popular operating system onboard, with 55 percent of the airline’s guests connecting to the Internet with their iPads and iPhones, while 30 percent used devices running on Android’s operating system.
Etihad Airways’ Live TV service is attracting strong interest and receiving great feedback from travellers, with an average of 50,000 hours of live news and major sporting events being viewed each month.
Peter Baumgartner, Etihad Airways’ Chief Commercial Officer, said: “We continue to redefine our guests’ air travel experience with innovative products and services, the latest communication technology and entertainment systems that best fit their needs.
The services offered by the airline are powered by the Panasonic Avionics Global Communications Suite, and OnAir’s inflight connectivity solution.
Now available on 43 wide-body aircraft, the Live TV service brings quality content from seven television channels including BBC World News, Sport 24 and CNN, the top three most viewed channels, and CNBC, euronews, Japan’s NHK World Premium, and Sky News Arabia.
Packages to access the Internet start at $5 and can be purchased using credit cards, PayPal and a range of other convenient payment methods. Mobile telephone usage will be billed by the guest’s mobile service providers based on the international roaming rates levied by the service providers.