American airlines starts testing in-flight video streaming

Last Tuesday, American Airlines announced that it will soon start implementing in-flight video streaming. Through a partnership with Aircell, customers will be able to watch movies and TV shows that they can stream from Wi-Fi enabled devices in the air.

The airline mentioned that it is currently testing the system on two Boeing 767 aircrafts on domestic flights. Customer testing will start early this summer and service development should be ready by 2012.

Rob friedman, American's VP of marketing said in a media statement that "American was the first North American airline to launch inflight Wi-Fi and today we again set a new industry standard as the first domestic airline to test inflight streaming video content... We know our customers wants to be connected on the ground and in the sky, so we are working hard to stay on the leading edge of connectivity through technology enhancements like this"

The company will offer these features by using Aircell's air-to-ground technology. The aircraft is able to connect to Aircell's broadband network using three antennas fixed on the outside of the aircraft.

Pricing has not yet been disclosed but as most airlines compete fiercely on airfares, improving in-flight entertainment is a way for them to differentiate themselves and create competitive advantage.