EL AL plans a shift in its in-flight entertainment strategy, at least in the short term. The carrier signed an agreement to deploy the Bluebox WOW streaming IFE platform across its fleet of 26 737s the company ramps up its recovery.
El Al is returning its fleet to the air with an invigorated commitment to our digital capabilities to ensure the most positive passenger experience on board.
– Tal Kalderon, Head of Inflight Entertainment and Connectivity
Bluebox CEO Kevin Clark describes shifting traveler needs, and Bluebox’s ability to quickly meet those demands, “The pandemic expedited a behavioral and expectation shift among passengers – they will expect a level of digital service on board, and yet the practical constraints of engineering certain types of technology onboard aircraft can mean a gap between that expectation and delivery.”
The carrier has a contract to deploy Viasat‘s in-flight connectivity solution on board. That should, in theory, provide the digital on-board experience. But the deployment suffered a setback late last year, with some hardware removed and reconfigured to reduce risk to the aircraft.
In the short-term the Bluebox system serves as a stopgap for the shift Clark mentions, but Viasat’s IFE/C solution remains the long-term play for EL AL. Eventually.
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The low cost and quick deployment timeline makes using portable solutions like Bluebox viable, even for limited-duration rollouts like this.
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