in-flight wi-fi Market

In the research study on In-Flight Wi-Fi market, we have segmented the market on basis of types, aircraft types, technology and geography. Under the segmentation scope, the types segment consists of hardware and services; the hardware segment is further categorized as antenna, wireless LAN, hotspot gateway, servers and access point devices and others; the service segment is sub-segmented as integration and implementation services, network planning and design services, content services and others. The aircraft types segment is classified as narrow body aircraft, wide body aircraft and business jets. And finally, on basis of technology, the market for In-Flight Wi-Fi is bifurcated into air to ground technology and satellite technology.


In-Flight Wi-Fi market is estimated to reach US$ 7.30 Bn by 2025. The companies are trying to bring better service with a faster speed of Wi-Fi owing to the increase in the number of air travelers and rise in passenger's expectations. Moreover, airlines are also increasingly switching towards the better Wi-Fi services, mainly satellite-based broadband services which deliver high internet speed. Airlines are now increasingly replacing their existing systems with better Wi-Fi system, in order to meet with changing passenger's demands, and there are different types of Wi-Fi systems available depends upon the types of aircraft.


Key trend which is expected to have predominantly effect the market in coming year in In-Flight Wi-Fi market is growth in number of air travelers and Wi-Fi connectivity preferences. In-Flight Wi-Fi allows air passengers to get online, do basic browsing, to get connected using cell phones via voice calls, emails, and SMS or MMS. Currently, there is an increase in the number of business and general air travelers. Thus, airline operators are more focused towards offering passengers with the benefit of using mobile phones for data connectivity, as well as for voice calls in domestic and international flights. In-Flight Wi-Fi increases the productivity of business travelers by enabling them to communicate while flying. With the increase in the number of flights offering Wi-Fi connectivity, passengers are more inclined towards boarding a flight which offers Wi-Fi connectivity. Another factor acting as a propellant for the market is implementation of new systems and technologies with better operational benefits. Airlines are increasingly switching towards the better Wi-Fi services, mainly satellite-based broadband services which deliver high internet speed. Airlines are now increasingly replacing their existing systems with better Wi-Fi system, in order to meet with changing passenger's demands, and there are different types of Wi-Fi systems available depends upon the types of aircraft. In 2017, various airlines have upgraded their existing Wi-Fi systems for better speed and connectivity.


The major factor hindering the growth of the market in the current scenario accounted for high cost incurred while up gradation and maintenance of the entire Wi-Fi systems. Pertaining to the sophisticated technology, the inflight Wi-Fi system and components are relatively expensive technology and airlines have to bear a significant cost to introduce the connectivity equipment on the aircraft. This may lead to the increased cost of tickets for travelers. Currently, airlines use two types of technologies to provide internet connectivity to aircraft, namely air to ground and satellite. Air to Ground technology is cheaper as compared to satellite technology, whereas, it functions better only when aircraft are flying across the land. The high cost of service, maintenance and up gradation is limiting the airlines to embed their aircrafts with inflight Wi-Fi technology.


Major players operating in the field of In-Flight Wi-Fi include GoGo LLC, Honeywell International Inc., Echostar Corporation, Kymeta Corporation, Panasonic Avionics Corporation, Viasat Inc., Sitaonair, Thales Group, Thinkom Solutions Inc., and Global Eagle Entertainment Inc.