The number of new companies vying to supply airlines with inflight broadband connectivity would suggest that the specter of Connexion by Boeing has been laid to rest (ATW, 10/06, p. 24). But one of the critics of the Boeing experiment cautions that carriers are better off when they look at connectivity as a differentiator rather than a profit center.rn"Providing it as a value-added service is sensible," says Tim Farrar, president of Menlo Park, Calif.-based TMF Associates, a company that provides technical and financial analysis in the telecom and satellite sectors. An airline that views inflight Internet access as a differentiator might be able to attract a few more high-end customers, he says, but that requires patience. "It would take some time to see a bump in traffic," he says, "and having it on a few trial flights won't produce a bump."
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