Heard about the newest In-Flight Broadband Study from Multimedia Intelligence? Here's the low down from the analyst, Amy Cravens who authored the studies on both IPTV and Broadband inflight applications.. "We are looking at $1B in revenue for In-Flight Broadband services by 2012", she told IFExpress and to help you decide if you need to purchase their work, here are some of the study highlights: Global market potential, usage, business models, and competitive analysis for the in-flight broadband market, Segmented next generation IFE services by access technology (GSM, satellite, air-to-ground), Segmented next generation IFE services by application (voice, video, and data), Forecasts including planes installed, installation revenue, and usage revenue, Key competitors are characterized, and an analysis of the pros and cons of satellite compared to air-to-ground are all included.

One thing we should note to our readers - the study does not include IFE hardware, just service revenue. As to background, Amy has an extensive analysis experience in WI-Fi and Broadband applications and is considered among the most authoritative sources on public broadband markets. For more info check out the report summary.

Well, power is up on the 787, but as you can well imagine that's not saying a whole lot. Our understanding is that at this point they have displays lit up, and have power the cabin, but the wires coming in from the wing & empennage are not connected as of this writing. The fact is that only about 35%, possibly less, of the equipment on the airplane has even been given Safety of Flight go-ahead. Boeing is obviously in a panic to get equipment pushed through, and provided there is no actual safety condition they will probably get it on. Remember the old saying? Hardware is easy, software is hard. Nope, hardware and software on a new program are both hard! 

Now about the recent China IFEC Summit 2008 in Beijing, the IFE Conference for Chinese airlines that ran last week. First, there were approximately 170 -180 attendees and few from Chinese airlines we hear. Eleven industry sponsors put on the two day event (Panasonic, Thales, Digecor, Astronics, and others). The only participating airline (China Southern) was besieged with questions and show-goers told us that there needed to be a lot more airlines and airline representatives attending. One comment we kept hearing was that Chinese airlines look at IFE differently. Top airline people seem to focus on revenue from advertising, pay-per-view and so forth rather that an included amenity. This may become a popular mantra worldwide. While the event was viewed as small, it was considered a good first try. Here's the final agenda for your review.