JetBlue Buys Verizon’s Airfone for In-Flight Messaging Push
Signaling JetBlue Airways’ belief that travelers want to stay connected at all times, its LiveTV unit has agreed to buy Verizon’s Airfone business, a move that will enable the discount carrier to offer a bundle of communications services during flight.
A JetBlue LiveTV spokesperson who asked not to be named told the E-Commerce Times that a deal has been reached, but did not provide details, such as the transaction price.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the sale on Monday, saying the transaction will give LiveTV control of 100 air-to-ground towers owned by Airfone a well as its existing stable of private and government aviation clients.
The handover is not expected to be completed until Jan. 1, 2009.
Because LiveTV provides services to other airlines as well as JetBlue, the move could accelerate the trend toward bringing a range of communications tools to airline travelers.
JetBlue has already staked an early claim to leadership in the in-flight messaging arena, recently outfitting one of its planes with a WiFi network — through a partnership with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM) and Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO) — that will enable users to send and receive e-mail and instant messages while on board.