AIRLINES MAY BUNDLE WIFI WITH TICKETS

MUMBAI: Along with a meal or preferred seat, air passengers in India may soon have the option to choose Wi-Fi services while booking a flight ticket, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Ever since the Telecom Commission approved Wi-Fi services in domestic flights on May 1, there has been interest from several airlines. The list includes major domestic airlines, who see this as an opportunity to increase their nonaero revenues, said a senior official at the department of telecommunications (DoT), who didn’t want to be named.

DoT is now in the process of creating a separate category of licensees called in-flight connectivity providers, who will provide internet as well as voice services within Indian territorial airspace in both domestic and international flights. DoT will soon start the process of framing licence terms for in-flight connectivity providers and then invite applications, over the next two-three months. Major domestic airlines are clearly interested in providing such services.

“We are studying the recommendations in detail, and in due course, we will determine the economics of offering the service on domestic and/ or international routes,” said a Vistara spokesperson. An Air India official said that the national carrier would definitely consider introducing Wi-Fi services once there is a more clarity around its business model. SpiceJet’s chairman Ajay Singh has earlier this month that his airline will be one of the first to offer inflight connectivity.