IM'ing From 30,000 Feet
from the sign-me-up dept
While many companies have put internet-in-the-sky plans on hold for a while, and others have started removing back-of-the-seat air phones, it seems that some innovation might actually be showing up via those phones. Verizon Airfone is letting passengers on some flights access instant messaging services via the phone, as well as some basic news, weather, sports, and stock info. The user has to hook up their laptop to the phone, and then they have to use Verizon's own IM program - but apparently it works with all the major IM systems. With any in-flight service, the question is always about what ridiculous amount they're going to charge - but in this case they're aiming for $5 - $10 per flight, which doesn't seem that crazy. I'm curious, though, how exactly it works. If you can use regular IM products, then why doesn't it allow full internet access? It says that the news and other info is updated every 15 minutes, so I'm wondering if your instant messages only get sent out every fifteen minutes as well.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
