Installing inflight entertainment hardware on board aircraft is key to offering a world-class passenger experience. But high-definition in-seat screens and powerful wireless portals need compelling media to match. Working to dramatically grow its IFE content, LATAM Airlines is now offering Paramount+ content across its passenger fleet flying domestically and internationally. It is the only airline in South America to offer this entertainment service.
Under the arrangement — which began on 1 December and was enabled by the airline’s digital experience partner Touch Inflight Solutions — LATAM passengers can choose from over 70 episodes of exclusive Paramount+ series, including highlights such as HALO, Tulsa King, and Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years. The content is available for free on the airline’s LATAM Play platform, which is the gateway to entertainment for both the embedded IFE systems installed on its widebody aircraft, and the wireless IFE systems installed on its narrowbody aircraft.
“Paramount+ content is available across our entire passenger fleet,” a spokeswoman with Santiago-headquartered LATAM confirmed to Runway Girl Network. In the case of LATAM’s widebody aircraft — its Boeing 787, 767, and 777 twinjets — the Paramount+ content is available on the individual in-seat IFE screens, she said, whereas passengers flying on the narrowbody fleet of Airbus A320 family twinjets can access the content through their personal mobile devices.
The LATAM Play portal on the carrier’s Airbus A319, A320 and A321 narrowbodies also includes access to Intelsat 2Ku-powered inflight connectivity. That means that passengers can stream stored content from the onboard server or indeed access the Internet over a live connection.
But stored IFE content can also be made to look a lot like connected direct-to-consumer (D2C) entertainment. Longtime industry veteran and APEX Technology Committee member Michael Childers previously explained to RGN that D2C solutions like the Paramount+ offering on British Airways, the HBO Max offering on LATAM, and the Peacock offering on JetBlue are all cached content channels that deliver content created for the D2C market but not explicitly delivered over a live inflight connectivity pipe. The primary motivation for these types of partnerships is to expose the brand and the D2C exclusive content to airline passengers to generate subscriptions.
Similarly, LATAM’s arrangement with Paramount+ covers cached content streamed to passengers’ devices (or indeed piped to Panasonic in-seat screens), which is akin to how it presents HBO Max and LinkedIn Learning content.
Paramount+ certainly sees the value in its relationship with LATAM. “At Paramount+, we constantly seek innovative ways to bring our content to as many viewers as possible, wherever they are, even in the skies. The partnership with LATAM Airlines allows us to reach a captive audience of consumers while they are traveling, and there is no better way to discover a new series or enjoy a program than when you are flying,” said Marco Nobili, executive vice president and international general manager of Paramount+
“Making our Paramount+ content available to LATAM Airlines customers is great for travelers and a testament to our commitment to providing exceptional consumer entertainment experiences to our fans.”
At present, LATAM Airlines Group boasts a fleet of over 300 aircraft including 248 Airbus narrowbodies, 52 Boeing widebodies serving passenger operations, and 19 freighter aircraft. In the coming year, LATAM aims to grow its IFE content offering by over 50% in a bid to consolidate its position “as a leader in the region with world-class content”. But the carrier is currently staying mum about the specifics behind this plan.
Meanwhile, inflight connectivity equipage on its Airbus single-aisle aircraft continues apace. “We are currently in the process of installing Wi-Fi on our subsidiary aircraft and already have the service on 148 aircraft,” revealed LATAM’s spokesperson. The carrier holds a deal with Intelsat to bring 2Ku broadband to its entire narrowbody fleet serving the domestic markets of Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.
Related Articles:
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- HBO Max, LATAM and Touch showcase the art of the possible in IFE
- Bandwidth and other barriers stymie connected D2C/IFE on widebodies
- How Touch is evolving to become a broader PaxEx partner to airlines
- Warner’s Esdra Lamy on paradox of choice and its impact on IFE
Featured image credited to LATAM
