By Plane or By Car; On-Screen Entertainment Travels With You

By Plane or By Car; On-Screen Entertainment Travels With You

Entertainment and travel are more integrated today than ever before. In fact, two airlines, JetBlue and Song, are using in-flight entertainment as a top selling point with consumers.

JetBlue was the first carrier to debut up to 24 channels of live DirecTV programming in-flight in 2000 and remains the only carrier offering satellite television free at every seat.

JetBlue also plans to offer customers first-run movies, sports and news programming, plus other original entertainment developed by Fox.

These features arrive just as Song Airlines is announcing the addition of pay-per-view to its existing live television on flights.

For those not traveling by plane, there’s good news: On-screen entertainment is rapidly expanding to automobiles. According to J.D. Power & Associates, 28 percent of new 2003 full-size sport utility vehicles were equipped with a passenger entertainment system, and 46 percent of consumers are interested in adding rear-seat entertainment to their next car.

Because satellite’s broad coverage area reaches not only planes but also automobiles in motion throughout the United States, live satellite television is a new, fast-growing trend in vehicle entertainment. It’s made possible by companies like Rhode Island-based KVH Industries.

KVH Industries has created the first in-motion satellite television system, called the TracVision A5, especially for use in passenger vehicles. The system contains a rugged, low-profile antenna and a compact satellite receiver.

The TracVision A5 system can support multiple video screens and receivers and is designed to be a part of a versatile entertainment system that can include DVD players, VCRs and console game systems. It is compatible with DirecTV service; KVH plans to also offer a Dish Network-compatible receiver in the future.

The system is available at more than 800 U.S. retail locations and costs around ,295. The monthly satellite service fee varies depending on the package selected but is similar to home programming.