LiveTV

Last updated
LiveTV, LLC.
FormerlyIn-Flight Phone Corporation
Company type Subsidiary
Founded1997;27 years ago (1997)
Founder
Defunct2014 (2014)
FateAcquired by Thales Group
Headquarters
Products in-flight entertainment
Owner

LiveTV was a major provider of airline in-flight entertainment systems. Originally a joint venture of Harris Corporation and BE Aerospace (BE Aerospace's interest subsequently sold to Thales Group), it was a wholly owned subsidiary of JetBlue Airways Corporation from its acquisition in 2002 until its sale to Thales in 2014. It had its headquarters in Melbourne, Florida.

Contents

The company was one of the "big four" manufacturers of in-flight entertainment systems, along with Panasonic Avionics Corporation, Thales Group, and Rockwell Collins.

History

Harris corporation developed a concept to provide live television to aircraft via satellite relay and subsequently patented the approach. In 1992 Harris contacted In-Flight Phone to explore the opportunity for commercial aircraft. In-Flight Phone contracted Harris to develop a concept demonstration for an ATG system to deliver live radio to commercial aircraft leveraging in-Flight Phone's experimental license. After completing this demonstration, In-Flight Phone contracted Harris to develop a satellite based Live TV system. When in-Flight Phone declared bankruptcy, Harris was a creditor with 50% of the development cost ~4.5 million dollars unpaid. As part of the settlement with In-Flight Phone's creditors for a carried interest, BE Aerospace and Harris formed a joint venture in 1998 called LiveTV; to complete development and commercialization of in-seat satellite TV for commercial aircraft. In June 2006, Live TV won a 1 MHz wide block of frequencies in the 800 MHz air-ground telephone auction conducted by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC). [1] This license will allow air-ground-air communications to take place. An affiliate of Aircell was the winner of the larger 3 MHz wide block of frequencies. Plans for utilizing these frequencies had not been announced by mid-2007.

On June 9, 2008, JetBlue announced that it will buy Verizon's Airfone (Formerly: GTE Airfone, Formerly: Airfone) service. [2]

Continental Airlines began to add LiveTV to all of its Boeing 737 Next Generation and Boeing 757-300 aircraft beginning in January 2009. [3]

In March 2011, LiveTV announced it would install on-board Wi-Fi connectivity for over 200 United Airlines aircraft, using the ViaSat Ka-band satellite service. [4] United was the second airline to announce the rollout of this high speed internet service, since LiveTV's parent company, JetBlue, entered an MOU with ViaSat in September 2010 in order to equip 160 JetBlue aircraft.

On March 13, 2014, Reuters reported that the division would be sold to Thales for $400 million. [5] The sale was completed in June 2014 for $399 million in cash. [6]

Operations

Headquarters

The LiveTV headquarters was in one 52,000 square feet (4,800 m2) building in the Airport Commercial Park along South Babcock Street in Melbourne, Florida. [7] [8] [9] In 2008 the company was headquartered in a total of 22,000 square feet (2,000 m2) of space in a group of five buildings in the Gateway Business Center in Melbourne. [8] [9] During that year the company announced plans to move to the Airport Commercial Park. In 2008 the company threatened to move its headquarters to Orlando if it did not receive tax breaks. [8] The City of Melbourne, Brevard County, and the State of Florida gave $164,000 in incentives, so the headquarters moved to a new facility in Melbourne. [9] As of that year the Melbourne headquarters has engineering, finance, marketing and sales personnel. [8]

Other facilities

In addition, LiveTV had a facility on the grounds of Orlando International Airport in Orlando. [7] As of 2008 the facility has a hangar, office space, and a warehouse. [7]

Other offices include:

Products

Its main product was in aircraft seat-back satellite television service, XM Satellite Radio, and movie programming. The system also offers live flight trackers, for people to see where they are.

Satellite Television Providers

Depending on the region the airline operates in, different satellite television providers are utilized.

Airlines Used LiveTV Products

Currently

The following list of airlines currently have the LiveTV System on their Aircraft.

Formerly

The following list of airlines have since removed the LiveTV System from their aircraft.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ultra high frequency</span> Electromagnetic spectrum 300–3000 MHz

Ultra high frequency (UHF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies in the range between 300 megahertz (MHz) and 3 gigahertz (GHz), also known as the decimetre band as the wavelengths range from one meter to one tenth of a meter. Radio waves with frequencies above the UHF band fall into the super-high frequency (SHF) or microwave frequency range. Lower frequency signals fall into the VHF or lower bands. UHF radio waves propagate mainly by line of sight; they are blocked by hills and large buildings although the transmission through building walls is strong enough for indoor reception. They are used for television broadcasting, cell phones, satellite communication including GPS, personal radio services including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, walkie-talkies, cordless phones, satellite phones, and numerous other applications.

Air-ground radiotelephone service is a system which allows voice calls and other communication services to be made from an aircraft to either a satellite or land based network. The service operates via a transceiver mounted in the aircraft on designated frequencies. In the US these frequencies have been allocated by the Federal Communications Commission.

Silver Airways is a regional airline in the United States with its headquarters in Hollywood, Florida, near Fort Lauderdale. It was founded in 2011 with assets from the former Gulfstream International Airlines, and currently operates scheduled flights from its hubs in Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, and Tampa, Florida, as well as San Juan, Puerto Rico. The airline started flying on December 15, 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orlando Sanford International Airport</span> Public airport in Sanford, Florida, United States

Orlando Sanford International Airport is in Sanford, Florida, United States, near Orlando. It was built as Naval Air Station Sanford, a Master Jet Base for carrier-based attack and reconnaissance aircraft, and was used by the U.S. Navy until 1969. The airport is owned and operated by the Sanford Airport Authority. It serves as an operating base for Allegiant Air.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">L3 Technologies</span> Defunct American defense and electronic equipment manufacturer

L3 Technologies, formerly L-3 Communications Holdings, was an American company that supplied command and control, communications, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C3ISR) systems and products, avionics, ocean products, training devices and services, instrumentation, aerospace, and navigation products. Its customers included the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, United States Intelligence Community, NASA, aerospace contractors, and commercial telecommunications and wireless customers. In 2019, it merged with Harris Corporation to form L3Harris Technologies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melbourne Orlando International Airport</span> Airport in Florida, United States

Melbourne Orlando International Airport is a public airport 1.5 miles (2.4 km) northwest of downtown Melbourne, in Brevard County, Florida, United States, and 70 miles (113 km) southeast of Orlando, located on central Florida's Space Coast. The airport is reached by NASA Boulevard. It is governed by a seven-member board which is appointed by the Melbourne City Council and the private sector. The airport budget is part of the Melbourne municipal budget; the airport receives no local tax dollars. The projected expenses for 2010 were $14.1 million. The executive director of the airport is Greg Donovan, A.A.E.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JetBlue</span> Low-cost airline of the United States

JetBlue Airways Corporation is a major airline in the United States headquartered in Long Island City, in Queens, New York City. It also maintains corporate offices in Utah and Florida.

Spirit Airlines, Inc., stylized as spirit, is a major American ultra-low cost airline headquartered in Dania Beach, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. Spirit operates scheduled flights throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Spirit was the seventh largest passenger carrier in North America as of 2023, as well as the largest ultra-low-cost carrier in North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockwell Collins</span> Defunct US-based electronics company (2001-2018)

Rockwell Collins, Inc. was a multinational corporation headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, providing avionics and information technology systems and services to government agencies and aircraft manufacturers. It was formed when the Collins Radio Company, facing financial difficulties, was purchased by Rockwell International in 1973. In 2001, the avionics division of Rockwell International was spun off to form the current Rockwell Collins, Inc., retaining its name.

In the U.S., Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations prohibit the use of mobile phones aboard aircraft in flight. Contrary to popular misconception, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) does not actually prohibit the use of personal electronic devices on aircraft. Paragraph (b)(5) of 14 CFR 91.21 permits airlines to determine if devices can be used in flight, allowing use of "any other portable electronic device that the operator of the aircraft has determined will not cause interference with the navigation or communication system of the aircraft on which it is to be used."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Worcester Regional Airport</span> Public airport in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States

Worcester Regional Airport is three miles (5 km) west of Worcester, in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The main property lies within municipalities of Worcester and Leicester, with supporting facilities in Paxton. Once owned by the City of Worcester, the airport has been owned and operated by the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) since June 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airfone</span> Air-ground radiotelephone service

Airfone was an air-ground radiotelephone service developed by MCI founder John D. Goeken, and operated under the names Airfone, GTE Airfone, and Verizon Airfone. Airfone allowed passengers to make telephone calls in-flight. Airfone handsets were often located in the middle airliner seatbacks, with two handsets per row for 6-wide coach seating configurations, and more or less depending on the aircraft layout and fare class. First class cabins typically had one handset per seat. Some planes had one or more bulkhead mounted phone stations with cordless handsets that the passengers could use, instead of the multiple wired handsets. Airfone phone calls were usually quite expensive compared to ground-based telephone calls, costing $3.99 per call and $4.99 per minute in 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">In-flight entertainment</span> Entertainment available to aircraft passengers during a flight

In-flight entertainment (IFE) refers to entertainment and other value-added services available to aircraft passengers during a flight. Frequently managed by content service providers, the types of in-flight entertainment and their content vary significantly based on the airline, aircraft type, and geographic region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lakeland Linder International Airport</span> Airport in Lakeland, Florida

Lakeland Linder International Airport is a public airport five miles southwest of Lakeland, in Polk County, Florida. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021 categorized it as a national reliever facility for Tampa International Airport. The airport has a Class 1 Federal Aviation Regulation (FAR) Part 139 operating certificate allowing passenger airline flights.

SITAONAIR is a company that enables airline passengers to use their smart devices including mobile phones and laptops for calls, text messaging, emails and Internet browsing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northeast Florida Regional Airport</span> Airport in Florida, U.S.

Northeast Florida Regional Airport, is located approximately four miles (6 km) north of historic St. Augustine, in St. Johns County, Florida, United States. NFRA serves as a key connection point for air travel in the Northeast Florida region. It is a public airport managed by the St. Johns County Airport Authority on behalf of the citizens of St. Johns County. Airport facilities include both commercial and general aviation terminals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gogo Business Aviation</span>

Gogo Business Aviation is a division of Gogo Inflight Internet is a provider of in-flight broadband Internet service and other connectivity services for business aircraft. It is headquartered in Broomfield, CO.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gogo Inflight Internet</span> In-flight Internet service

Gogo Inc. is an American provider of in-flight broadband Internet service and other connectivity services for business aircraft, headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado. Through its Gogo LLC subsidiary, Gogo previously provided in-flight WiFi to 17 airlines until the Commercial Air business was sold to Intelsat for $400 million in December 2020. According to Gogo, over 2,500 commercial aircraft and 6,600 business aircraft have been equipped with its onboard Wi-Fi services. The company is the developer of 2Ku, new in-flight satellite-based Wi-Fi technology rolled out in 2015.

Elite Airways was an airline based in the United States that operated charter and scheduled passenger flights. The airline was headquartered in Portland, Maine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">C band (IEEE)</span> Range of radio frequencies from 4 to 8 GHz

The C band is a designation by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies ranging from 4.0 to 8.0 gigahertz (GHz). However, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission C band proceeding and auction, designated 3.7–4.2 GHz as C band. The C band is used for many satellite communications transmissions, some cordless telephones, as well as some radar and weather radar systems.

References

  1. "FCC Auctions: Summary: Auction 65." FCC. Retrieved on June 9, 2013
  2. "JetBlue LiveTV to buy Verizon's Airfone network," Reuters Retrieved June 9, 2013
  3. "Continental Airlines to Offer Live Television and E-Mail on Domestic Flights," Yahoo!
  4. "LiveTV and ViaSat Announce Second Domestic Airline to Select Ka-band for Connectivity. Retrieved on June 9, 2013
  5. "Reuters: "Thales to buy JetBlue's LiveTV""
  6. Drum, Bruce. "JetBlue sells LiveTV to the Thales Group for $399 million". World Airline News.
  7. 1 2 3 "Contact us." LiveTV. Retrieved on June 9, 2013.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Blake, Scott. "LiveTV to hire more people in Melbourne, Orlando." Florida Today . January 30, 2008. Retrieved on January 19, 2010.
  9. 1 2 3 "Where we are." LiveTV. Retrieved on June 9, 2013.