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Qantas To Offer Free, Faster Wi-Fi Streaming With Netflix And Spotify

Qantas To Offer Free, Faster Wi-Fi

Qantas To Offer Free, Faster Wi-Fi Streaming With Netflix And Spotify

Qantas is going to be offering free Wi-Fi with streaming services, beginning with its domestic flights and expanding to international flights in the distance future.  The three streaming services that will be offered are Netflix, Foxtel, and Spotify.  Foxtel will be a good deal for flyers because it will give three free days of streaming access every time they fly.  Alternatively, Netflix and Spotify will require a subscription, but Netflix will offer a 30-day free trial for those who do not have a subscription.

The internet uses an American satellite company for the service and will be available for all domestic flights, including those that fly to the more remote islands of Australia.  It’s new 737s have been equipped the technology and are just waiting to be activated for passengers to begin using the service.  Later this year, it is expected that the technology will be installed on the rest of the 737 fleet and the Airbus A330s.  It is expected that those two aircraft fleets will be equipped within 18 months, at which point the international planes will begin being fitted for the roll out.

According to The Australian, “Qantas will also feature real-time flight data; hotel, restaurant and transport options; the latest weather; and personalised information linked to a passenger’s itinerary and Frequent Flyer ­account.”  It should begin to be rolled out this month.  The airlines is trying to get more companies to sign on for the program.  SkyNews Australia will also stream on the flights.

This does raise the question of what the future holds for inflight entertainment systems on Qantas planes in the future.  Though Qantas says it hasn’t made a decision yet, it is possible they may be prepping to make a similar choice to what American Airlines recently announced, where they will not be installing inflight entertainment televisions on the seat backs, but relying on customers to bring their own devices for streaming capabilities.  We wrote about how we don’t like that, but it will save the airline millions, meaning it is definitely a move that Qantas could seriously be considering, particularly given its move to streaming technology.

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