APEX Media forecast PaxEx in 2015
Share
2014 has been eventful within the airline passenger experience space, with numerous milestones being celebrated this year for a number of airlines and companies across the industry. We saw innovations in seating and aircraft interiors, major advancements in connectivity, brilliant airline rebranding and significant developments in the air market around the world. But 2014 wasn’t all sunshine and roses in the air travel industry, having been coined “the year of the bad airline passenger,” with reclining seat wars making headlines and devices designed to end cabin wars gaining in popularity.
You may have already read our top 10 list of lists from 2014, but the APEX media team also looks to the future of PaxEx. Here’s what we’re excited about for 2015.
Terri Potratz, Editor
Wearables
Wearables will continue to gain momentum, spilling over into the consumer market as products become a bit more practical for daily use – and dare I hope a little more fashion-forward! Airlines will build on interesting results from studies such as the “Happiness Blanket” trailed by British Airways and pursue new cabin-comfort hacks: What about an eye mask that displays your cycle of sleep so you’re not disturbed during precious REM stages? A tool that alerts those around me when I’m about to go from hungry to hangry? (Someone get this girl some crackers, stat!)
The trick with wearables will be to develop products that augment reality, rather than distract us from it – especially within service sectors. We’ve already seen a number of airlines provide their crew with smart management tools such as tablets, and I think we’ll see the introduction of linked, complementary devices such as watches and jewelry more frequently within the cabin environment.
Mobile Advertising
Beacon technology and mobile advertising will shrink the disconnect between the digital world and our physical environment. With real-time push notifications, targeted advertising, instant payment tools and socially connected devices, passengers will know what they need to know, exactly when they need to know it. We’ll be spending more time “plugged-in” but the experience will be so seamless and efficient we won’t even realize it. Sounds like the plot line of The Matrix. Beacons will track passenger movements, helping airports to manage traffic flow and analyze behavior, while ever-connected devices will get to know their owners so well they’ll be curating experiences with personalized suggestions based on a combination of biometric data and behavioral predictions.
Katie Sehl, Copy Editor
Economy and Premium Economy Class Enhancements
I’m looking forward to seeing competition and innovation to trickle down into economy and premium economy cabins over the course of the coming year. We’ve already seen improved meal service options in economy cabins on Qantas, Cathay Pacific, Lufthansa and others, and in the Persian gulf, carriers like Emirates and Etihad Airways are enhancing the economy passenger experience with offerings like headrests, hot towels and larger IFE screens. With several surveys reporting that business travelers are increasingly opting to book coach over business, I imagine we will be seeing many more carriers enhancing their economy and premium economy products in 2015.
Real-time Updates
A new report from SITA indicates that passengers are looking for more real-time smartphone updates from airline and airport operators while they’re on the move. SITA reports that, “The next three years are likely to see a rapid escalation of airlines providing flight and bag status updates to passengers via smartphones.” Currently 72 percent of travelers are using their smartphones to search for real-time flight status updates, and 85 percent are looking for real-time baggage status information.
Likewise, a recent FlightView survey found that 84 percent of respondents have the expectation that airports will keep them updates on their flight status. Several airlines and airports already have apps that track these updates, but with the overwhelming amount of apps passengers have to chose from, finding a way to push the necessary notifications from the best sources will be the real challenge.
Al St. Germain, Publisher
APEX Abu Dhabi
- Photo: Zuhair Herzallah
A quick review of airline news headlines always turns up a plethora of pieces on the innovations put forward by carriers in the Middle East region. Carriers such as Emirates, Etihad and Qatar are setting new standards for luxury both on and off the plane with entire terminals dedicated to premium passengers, brand new aircraft type deliveries and even apartments onboard! Juxtaposed against that luxury is a quickly emerging low-cost market with a number of new carriers looking to provide no-frills service for a growing traveling population. At the APEX Middle East regional conference, the airlines themselves will tell us how they are making these achievements, while attendees enjoy the sights and spectacles of Abu Dhabi.
APEX Multimedia Market
“Content is king.”
“All that matters is really good content.”
“People will pay for quality content.”
The list of clichés goes on and on, but the truth is that content plays a critical role in the customer experience equations for major industries around the world, including airlines. The APEX MultiMedia Market has become the industry’s most “content-centric” gathering, and this year’s edition in Prague will certainly take a hard look at important trends such as emerging production hubs in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, user-generated content and what is still the hottest question in in-flight entertainment – when, if ever, will premium early window content be available to stream onto passengers’ own devices?
Jessica Sammut, Community Manager
More Automation
With the many trips we take for APEX events, I’m definitely looking forward to more automation in air travel and advancements that will make the travel experience more seamless, end-to-end. 2014 saw the TSA crowd-source innovation ideas aimed at speeding up screening lines and airlines and airports launched apps designed to save passengers time and skip the check-in kiosks all together. The (near) future of seamless travel will originate in the airport terminal so I’ll be on the look out for innovations in the passenger’s first physical touch-point, the landside lobby.
More Personalization
I’m anxiously awaiting the new technology that will not only elevate but curate the passenger experience, specifically in-flight. 2014 brought an increase in travel brand partnerships, planting the seed for more choice in travel, and as airlines begin to equip cabin crew with mobile devices, the potential for personalization is enormous. Now, all there is left to do is sit back, relax and daydream about a future flight that includes delightful touches such as a “personalized duty-free shopping list” sent directly to my personal device. Awesome! More time to check out the airport art at SFO.