US Airways Kills In Flight Movies - Smart Move, Einstein
11 July 2008
No CommentIn a rather strange move, US Airways have decided to stop showing in flight movies. Why? Because no one was buying their crappy, overpriced headsets.
From the Consumerist:
Sales of $5 headsets “has gone off a cliff” according to a US Airways spokesperson. “What was economical 18 months ago is not economical today,” he said. “The things we were looking at for tomorrow, in general, have had to be put on hold.”
Apparently they didn’t realise the in flight movies were not a money maker, but a service to their passengers. Everybody who flies regularly knows what a drag it can be, especially when you are cramped into a window seat with a fatty right next to you. For some people the movies made it bareable and helped time fly (excuse the pun) by faster.
Hell, I even almost enjoyed a Hugh Grant movie on a plane once!
Now, I’m not sure about the economics here. I have no idea how much it costs US Airways to broadcast a movie on their plans. But I do know that a plane holds anything between 150 to about 300 seats. So in the ideal scenario they would make $5 x 300 = $1,500.
In the grand scheme of things that doesn’t seem like a whole lot of money.
My plane to Egypt next week better have in flight entertainment or I’ll eat all their free peanuts to get my money’s worth.
What? They stopped serving those too?
US Airways has already discontinued free snacks, started charging $2 for beverages that were formerly complimentary, and added a $15 fee to check one bag and an additional $25 fee to check a second bag.
Bollocks.
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