IP: more on Airline grounds in-flight phone service

[David Farber <dave@farber.net>]

> To: farber@cis.upenn.edu
> From: "Jonathan B Spira" <jspira@basex.com>
> Date: Thu, 7 Feb 2002 12:24:07 -0500
>
>
>
> Dave, I had several conversations with AT&T's airphone division (it is 
> separate from Wireless, which does mobile phones) over the summer.  They 
> sounded like they were preparing to close their doors back then.
>
> What puzzled me is the tremendous investment in infrastructure and why 
> they either didn't
>         1.)        lower rates to boost traffic
>         2.)        sell off the infrastructure (incl. phones) to another 
> operator who could run it more inexpensively
>
> /s/ Jonathan
>
> Jonathan B. Spira
> Chairman and Chief Analyst
> Basex. What's in IT for you (tm).
> Phone: +1 212 760-1555 x113
> E-mail: jspira@basex.com
> Web: http://www.basex.com
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
>
>
>
> David Farber <dave@farber.net>
> Sent by: owner-ip-sub-1@admin.listbox.com
>
> 02/07/2002 11:42 AM
> Please respond to farber
>
>         To:        ip-sub-1@majordomo.pobox.com
>         cc:
>         Subject:        IP: more on  Airline grounds in-flight phone service
>
>
> >Date: Thu, 07 Feb 2002 08:39:02 -0800
> >From: Ari Ollikainen <Ari@OLTECO.com>
> >
> >At 8:56 AM -0500 2/7/02, David Farber wrote:
> >>>From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>
> >>>
> >>>Airline grounds in-flight phone service
> >>>By Sam Ames
> >>>Staff Writer, CNET News.com
> >>>February 6, 2002, 4:20 PM PT
> >>><http://news.com.com/2100-1033-831093.html>
> >>>
> >>>Airlines are throwing away those phones built into the seats, and
> >>>they're blaming it all on cell phones.
> >>>American Airlines will discontinue its AT&T in-flight phone service by
> >>>March 31, a spokesman for the airline said Wednesday.
> >
> >         Interesting spin by Sam Ames...but the reality is that
> >         AT&T Wireless is leaving the in-flight phone business claiming
> >         that "aviation no longer fits into At&T's long-term business
> >         plan" according to Mark Siegel of AT&T Wireless.
> >
> >http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A29928-2002Feb5.html
> >
> >         The more troubling thing about this is the fact that during the
> >         9/11 hijackings, passengers used in-flight phones AND cell phones
> >         to contact loved ones, relatives, and authorities. Severing
> >         in-flight service will leave only cell phones for emergency
> >         communication use by passengers...which, of course, is prohibited
> >         by the FAA.
>
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