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Press Release: ANA gives passengers exclusive live television

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Panasonic Avionics (Panasonic), the world leader in inflight entertainment and communications, and All Nippon Airways CO., LTD (ANA) today announced a partnership to launch ANA SKY Live TV and broadband Internet services on domestic aircraft that fly routes across Japan.

ANA Sky Live TV includes three unique channels of Japanese news, sports and other popular programming from JSAT Corporation’s Sky PerfecTV! platform. Passengers will be able to watch general sports programming with Nittele G+, catch the latest news updates from Nippon TV News 24 and follow live football programming on Sukasaka!.

In addition to exclusive live television, ANA’s new experience also offers high-speed connectivity, which allows guests to stay connected and productive while they fly. Passengers will be able to use their own personal devices to access email; stay in touch with family, friends, and social media networks; and browse the Internet. This service will be further enhanced with music, television shows and other content that can be wirelessly streamed to mobile devices.

Paul Margis, President and Chief Executive Officer of Panasonic Avionics, said, “Today’s launch is the direct result of our long-standing, close relationship with ANA. From the beginning, our goal was to deliver an integrated and connected experience that keeps passengers immersed and engaged in ANA’s inflight experience. The broadband Wi-Fi and unique live television content is a first for Japan, and we are proud and honoured to partner with ANA on this exciting, new passenger amenity.”

Koji OKA, Vice President, Products & Services, All Nippon Airways said, “We wanted to push the envelope to ensure the best inflight experience for our customers. With a line-up of exciting television programming, enhanced with Internet access and other communications services, we’ve created a truly unique experience for our customers. We look forward to working with Panasonic on future technologies that even further improve the experience we offer to our guests.”

About the Service 

The ANA WiFi Service and ANA SKY LIVE TV will utilize Panasonic Avionics Corporation’s eXConnect and eXTV services via satellite owned and operated by SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation.

About All Nippon Airways 

ANA is the largest airline in Japan by revenues and passenger numbers. Founded in 1952, ANA flies today on 81 international routes and 112 domestic routes. The ANA group has 35,000 employees and a fleet of about 240 aircraft. In FY2014, it carried 50.4 million passengers and generated revenues of 1.71 trillion Japanese yen. ANA has been a member of Star Alliance since 1999, and has joint-ventures with United Airlines on trans-Pacific and Asia routes, and with Lufthansa, Swiss International Airlines and Austrian Airlines on Japan-Europe routes. Its Frequent Flyer Program, ANA Mileage Club, has more than 26 million members. ANA was voted Airline of the Year for 2013 by Air Transport World Magazine, and in 2015 was awarded five stars for the third consecutive year by the world’s leading Airline and Airport review site, SKYTRAX. ANA is the launch customer and biggest operator of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

About SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation

SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation is a leader in the converging fields of broadcasting and communications. It is Asia’s largest satellite operator with a fleet of 16 satellites, and Japan’s only provider of both multi-channel pay TV broadcasting and satellite communications services. SKY Perfect JSAT delivers a broad range of entertainment through the SKY PerfecTV! platform, the most extensive in Japan with a total of 3.5 million subscribers. For more information, please visit www.sptvjsat.com and www.jsat.net

About Panasonic Avionics Corporation

Panasonic Avionics Corporation is the world’s leading supplier of inflight entertainment and communication systems. The company’s best-in-class solutions, supported by professional maintenance services, fully integrate with the cabin enabling its customers to deliver the ultimate travel experiences with a rich variety of entertainment choices, resulting in improved quality communication systems and solutions, reduced time-to-market and lower overall costs.

Established in 1979, Panasonic Avionics Corporation, a U.S. corporation, is a subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation of North America, the principal North American subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation. Headquartered in Lake Forest, California with over 4,100 employees and operations in 80 locations worldwide, it serves over 300 customers worldwide and provides IFEC systems on over 6,000 aircraft.  For additional information, please visit www.panasonic.aero.

Featured image credited to istock.com/JakeOlimb