APEX Content Market 2026: Emirates’ Patrick Brannelly on Why its ice IFE Offers a Better Experience than Streaming at Home
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During a thought leadership session during APEX Content Market in Dubai this year, Emirates SVP IFE & Connectivity Patrick Brannelly took part in a conversation with APEX Group CEO Dr. Joe Leader on “Striving for the Best in IFE & Connectivity… and Beyond.” Brannelly was effusive about the value added by an airline offering a broad-ranging, eclectic mix of content onboard, arguing Emirates provides a more engaging viewing experience than streaming services do on the ground.
How Emirates Provides the Best IFE in the World
Dr. Leader began the discussion by asking what Brannelly believes secured Emirates the 2026 APEX Best Global Entertainment Award, which is based on verified passenger feedback. Brannelly confessed of his team, “We are never happy with anything that we’ve done. We know that things will get better in the future, they always have in the history of human life. So, you just need to say well, at which point between now and the future are you going to make something better?”
“The need for connectivity is absolute.”
He said Dubai as a country takes a similar attitude, investing meticulously in its ‘product.’ The ultimate goal for his team, he added, is to drive loyalty, the same goal as the cabin crew and everyone else who works for Emirates. “If people get on the plane and say ‘I wish I had that at home,’ I’m a very happy bunny.”
Streaming Services Not a Threat to Traditional IFE
When asked about whether streaming is in the process of changing IFE beyond recognition, Brannelly told Leader he thinks it is less disruptive to airlines than initially envisaged. “Everybody I know seems to moan there’s nothing to watch on Netflix. I’m sure there’s great stuff on there, but you exhaust it because it’s sitting right there at home, and you binge-watch everything.
“I think we’re better than streaming, because streaming is quite myopic in what it’s offering. Streaming services are going through a massive evolution at the moment, and I think they’re probably going to evolve to where we are. They’ve already got massive movies, great television and you’re already seeing games on Netflix. Live TV, [we’re] already seeing some live content, but news, sport, that’s not there at the moment, and it’s really messy at home going in and out of 10 or 15 different streaming services. We’re making it simple, and that’s what gives people a great experience,” he said.
Good IFC is Critical for a Positive Passenger Experience
Brannelly was forthright on the importance of a strong in-flight connectivity product. “I think all of you are using more gigabytes on your phone this year than you were a year ago. The consumption, the need for connectivity, is absolute. And if you take it away, somebody feels upset.”
This, he argued, is the reason why he believes that connectivity has replaced food as the most complained-about aspect of a flight. “No matter how good the food was, the food was rubbish. It would just be the thing to kick the airline about, until connectivity came on, and then that was even worse,” he joked.
Brannelly acknowledged Emirates’ role as an early adopter of IFC, remembering back to the days of “Swift64 and all the other legacy solutions,” but admitted that nothing has been able to meet passengers’ satisfaction, until now.
“If somebody gets on the plane and watches the most popular movie, we’ve really not done anything.”
In November 2025, the airline announced it was installing Starlink’s IFC service fleetwide. At APEX Content Market, Brannelly confirmed Starlink is already live on 14 aircraft at the time of writing and was being installed on a more jets every couple of days. He said the installation – which involves the addition of two antennas on a Boeing 777 and three on an Airbus A380 – can be achieved in a day, but it takes a little longer to remove the old hardware and to integrate live TV, which is a very important part of Emirates’ offering. “I think only five or six airlines run it,” he claimed.
“I think the technology wasn’t there [in the past], and it certainly couldn’t keep up with the growth in demand from customers,” Brannelly explained. “But now, we get to be connected with a low-Earth orbit (LEO) network, we have more wireless access points (WAPs), multiple antennas […] and we have more than enough bandwidth for everybody to do every single thing that they want […] I’m confident that these future networks and the infrastructure on the aircraft and the ground is absolutely solid.”
In terms of connectivity enabling the loading of content to the aircraft far more quickly, Brannelly shared the opinion that it may not be practical. While it sounds “great” to “license an episode on the 17th of the month and on the 18th of the month it’s on the plane,” he elaborated, you actually “need to run a department with some structure and monthly deadlines. And having deadlines every day is not easy on people.”
“I’m confident that these future networks and the infrastructure on the aircraft and the ground is absolutely solid.”
The Privilege of Access to World-Class Entertainment
Brannelly rounded off the discussion with a prediction that nothing major will change IFE in the next five years, certainly in terms of how ice operates, as the industry moves too slowly. “We’ve got 250 legacy aircraft and you can’t change them overnight because the supply chain is so terrible in this industry.”
He did, however, voice his opinion that second-screening won’t last, something he is glad about. “The directors that make these films and TV shows want your full attention. Let’s give it to them for a couple of hours and absolutely enjoy the entertainment […] I think there’s very few times in our busy life we get time to sit and spend eight or nine hours or [watching content], and entertainment is such a pleasure.”
Finally, he made a passionate request to content creators to keep making films and programs. “Just keep it coming, and work with us to see how we can get people off the beaten track. If somebody gets on the plane and watches the most popular movie, we’ve really not done anything. If they get off the plane having watched something they never thought they would have watched, when […] you change their thinking […], that’s fantastic.”
To read more about which new titles companies attending APEX Content Market 2026 have on offer, click here.