| KEYNOTE: AIRBUS BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE
Andy Schweiger, Sr. Dir., Project Management, Onboard Information Systems, Airbus
Passengers want the same experience in the air as they have on the ground, and onboard technology must be scalable to support expanding demands for entertainment, information, and communication services, stated Airbus Senior Director of Project Management Andy Schweiger during his keynote address 20 September at the WAEA 26th Annual Conference & Exhibition in Hamburg .
The goal at Airbus, Schweiger said, is to accommodate a variety of technologies within a single backbone to provide enhanced bandwidth, control mechanisms, and quality of service.
Gathering information from passenger and airline market research and talking with technology providers and IFE suppliers, Airbus is developing an evolutionary path to deploy an aircraft that meets the demands of the mass market.
Airbus is building on the Airbus 380's Ethernet backbone to develop and evolve technology for the A350's entrance into service in 2010, Schweiger said.
SPECIFICATION FOR DIGITAL CONTENT MANAGEMENT
The WAEA Digital Content Management Working Group (DCMWG) has been working for several years to identify the technologies to evolve from the “analog world” (where IFE content is delivered physically) to the future digital content supply chain.
Rather than writing standards, the WG decided to create a “requirements document” covering the end-to-end digital supply chain—from order entry to the fileserver onboard the aircraft.
This document would ensure interoperability of systems without requiring a single, common codec (compression/decompression algorithm).
DCMWG co-chair Michael Childers (IMDC/IMS Inflight) explained that codecs are still evolving, and it is premature to select only one as a standard.
The Security Ad Hoc Committee of the WG is near completion of guidelines establishing a secure end-to-end process.
Codec Demo
 Dr. Sudhakar Shetty and Don Schultz (Boeing) presented a video demonstration comparing visual quality of the current codec (MPEG-1 at 1.5 mbps) and the new MPEG-4 quality codec. The new codec offers DVD quality and requires less storage and bandwidth. Boeing screened side-by-side comparisons of four codecs at its booth.
CONTENT PART 1: THE IMPACT OF ‘ANYWHERE' ENTERTAINMENT
 Bryan Rusenko (Crest National Digital Media Complex) traced the technological evolution leading to today's portable players, which give the user a true “freedom and choice” in entertainment.
A PVR (personal video recorder) “is essentially a computer,” he said. And thanks to the miniaturization of "chip" technologies, “mobile phones aren't just for phone calls anymore.”
The future will offer even more choice of content, with more ways to view the content in more places, Rusenko predicts.
With the ability to carry their IFE with them, passengers won't settle for airline-provided content that is refreshed every 30 or 60 day, said Michael Childers (IMDC/ IMS Inflight). Embedded IFE systems must be designed to interface with both passenger carry-on devices and airline-provided portable IFE players.
Cost of Connectivity
Satellite air time is expensive, so there must be a viable return on the investment, explained John Wade (OnAir). Next-generation satellites are opening doors to new services in the aircraft cabin, including Internet connectivity, cell-phone services, crew applications, and broadcast television.
Connectivity is a fundamental addition to airline offerings, but “passenger connectivity alone won't justify the expense of installing a broadband system,” he said. The airline needs to create user-based applications of value and tie them to aircraft applications.
Implications for Ad Revenue
 Niall McBain (Spafax) explored the challenges of advertising in the age of digital entertainment.
Users of PVR technology watch 30% more television than before and skip 70% of the commercials, he said, adding that entertainment has gone from “provider-push to consumer-pull.”
The role of conventional advertising spots is diminishing. IFE must focus on the overall customer experience, and the airlines must develop revenue-generating partners who help create that experience.
CONTENT: PART 2 – TOMORROW'S PASSENGER PROFILE
Consumer technology will continue to drive entertainment and infrastructure expectations of Generation X and Y passengers (born 1965-1978 and 1978-2000, respectively), according to Dan Callahan (United Airlines).
Baby Boomers (born 1946-1954) are less demanding in their technology requirements, and technology is “important but not essential” to Gen-X passengers. Generation Y passengers “can't live without e-mail, instant messaging/text messaging, and the Internet,” Callahan said.
Airlines must use qualitative research to understand their passengers, stated Walé Adepoju (IMDC). They must monitor trends that influence passengers, make a creative judgment, and conduct follow-up research to monitor the impact of their decisions on business.
To address a changing population demographic and a variety of social and cultural trends, airlines must remain flexible, increase choice but stay simple, be creative, and enhance the passenger experience while reducing costs.
Airlines also must let passengers stay connected to their world without destroying the atmosphere for others,” Adepoju said.
THE NEW SEAT/IFE ARCHITECTURE
Dimitrios Tsirangelos (Airbus) reviewed in-seat equipment standards for today's IFE applications and tomorrow's solutions.
Traditional seat electronics boxes (SEBs) have a large cover for airflow cooling and reduce passenger foot-space. They also have a high rate of failure because they are not in a protected environment.
New, smaller seat boxes offer more foot-space, employing a new “rack system” integrated between the seats. Tomorrow's solutions feature advanced seat-to-seat interfaces, “plug-and-play” connectivity, and minimal lead-time for cabin reconfiguration.
IFE Integration
 Darren Brown (Boeing) examined how integration between the seat and the IFE electrical equipment can simplify and standardize passenger seat design.
Standard interfaces let suppliers design installations that optimize passenger space and maintenance accessibility and minimize certification effort and airplane configuration changes. This results in reduced costs and reduced maintenance and lead times.
Currently, airplane seats and IFE systems are developed separately, said Claude Deves (Sicma). Standardization of (pin out) cables would let customers change IFE systems without re-wiring the seat. It would also make maintenance easier and shorten training periods.
ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES: PART 1 —EXPLORING THE APPLICATIONS
Wireless IFE is now possible, and Steve Sizelove (Panasonic Avionics Corp.) predicts that in the future there will be no wires at all at the passenger seat.
Four key elements must be considered in moving to wireless: bandwidth, signal path, content security, and content integrity.
 Passengers increasingly expect wireless connectivity wherever they are, including onboard aircraft, stated Dan Reed (Thales Avionics Inc.).
The aircraft must connect to the ground through all phases of the flight—from the departure gate, through the flight, to the arrival gate—and technology is needed that can handle all forms of communication.
Currently, 802.11 a/b/g wireless technologies are available for on-the-ground connectivity; however, each airport is autonomous so acquiring approval can be complicated.
Reed said 802.16 (WiMax), a developing wireless technology, can provide an on-ground solution. Because of its long connectivity range (up to six miles), it can be used from an off-airport location and requires fewer hot spots.
ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES: PART 2 —EXPLORING THE APPLICATIONS
An unprecedented IFE transformation is upon us—according to Kris Stevens (CoKinetics Systems) and Doug Cline (Lumexis Corporation)—thanks to the industry's shift to open standards, better, cheaper hardware, a wealth of rich content, and a wider pipeline on to (and within) the aircraft.
The specialized, proprietary software of legacy IFE systems is fast giving way to IFE applications based on common platforms, written in standard scripting languages (like XML, HTML, JavaScript), Stevens said. The IFE industry now uses “the same building blocks” as the rest of the world. This has opened the door to a vast labor pool of innovative software developers, driving prices down, and giving Airlines unparalleled flexibility in tailoring applications to their passengers' current and future needs.
Likewise, Cline noted, today's IFE systems now use standard hardware components, produced in high volume (thus cheaper) and universally compatible with the popular consumer entertainment platforms, applications, and content. And thanks to gigabit-per-second bandwidth, airlines can now carry “any and all conceivable content.”
More than ever, people love their entertainment and are willing to pay for it, Cline said. “But for the first time, we can now offer passengers the right product, priced right!"
THE NEW PASSENGER INTERFACE
 In designing a passenger user-interface, “keep it simple!” agreed the panel of Vassilios Georgakopoulos (Royal Brunei Airlines), Neil Hoult (Thales Avionics Inc.), Sally Lythgo (Air New Zealand), and Matthias Walther (Rockwell Collins).
A successful graphic user interface (GUI) lets the passenger access all IFE content and reinforces the airline's marketing strategy, corporate design, and overall IFE content strategy.
Navigation should be “intuitive,” so all users can quickly understand how to use the system. Usability testing is essential in creating a successful GUI, Walther stressed.
Although a GUI must be simple to use, “don't design for the lowest common denominator,” Hoult warned. Similar icons should be used throughout and located on the same area of each page. A GUI should be “forgiving” and let a user backtrack if he is lost or makes a wrong choice.
Georgakopoulos and Lythgo shared the development process of their airlines' GUIs.
Royal Brunei 's GUI was designed to create an image that evokes space, freshness, and a feeling of peace and serenity. The GUI also is “a powerful marketing tool” and reinforces the airline's logo and branding colors, Georgakopoulos said.
The simple six-button main menu uses images that are not language-specific and are internationally recognizable.
Air New Zealand uses its GUI to connect the Air New Zealand experience with the New Zealand experience, Lythgo said. The marketing strategy “Inspiring Journeys” recognizes the adventurous spirit of the ANZ passenger.
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