The Bluebox Wow streaming IFE solution is now available as a plug-in model. The company announced certification from EASA this week, allowing the updated option to be installed on A320 aircraft.
Aerospace Engineering Solutions led the certification process and holds the STC. The move comes as part of testing with a soon-to-be-announced customer in the Asia-Pacific region.
The granting of this STC is an exciting and major milestone for us as we continue to sign up new airline customers eager to return to the business of delivering exceptional digital in-flight experiences to their passengers. – James Macrae, CTO, Bluebox
The original Bluebox Wow platform delivered a portable, battery-powered solution placed in an overhead bin. It allowed for a cost-effective IFE platform that quickly deploys across a fleet. But, CTO James Macrae sees a shift in the market, one that Bluebox is keen to capture, “We’re attracting the interest of airlines with larger fleets. By utilizing aircraft power, Bluebox Wow devices can deliver the same digital IFE services without a battery present, eliminating the need for logistics management of batteries, and still offering a considerably lighter and lower-cost system than fully fitted W-IFE.”
The updated configuration also includes a “Pause on PA” feature that pauses playback in the event of announcements from the flight deck or cabin crew, a nod to passenger safety. Removing the battery is a further step on that path. Macrae notes that the company can “avoid the need for complicated battery/flight status logic and control and the possible risks involved.”
The Bluebox Wow platform offers a range of entertainment across film, TV, audio, games, and other digital content. These services can be offered to passengers on a complimentary basis or paid for via payment card or voucher access with no cabin crew interaction required.
Bluebox also offers onboard retail services, including the ability to order and pay for products and services via passenger devices with full inventory synchronisation, in parallel to traditional sales from galley carts via cabin crew point-of-sale devices. In addition to onboard touch-free sales, Bluebox’s retail solutions also enable pre-paid (booking path) purchases.
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