The IMS Company is emerging as a force to be reckoned with in the world of in-seat audio/video on demand (AVOD) after adding Lufthansa and Brussels Airlines to the growing list of customers for its RAVE seat-centric in-flight entertainment system.
Touted as being significantly less costly and more lightweight than traditional server-based IFE platforms, RAVE will be installed on five Brussels Airlines Airbus A330s in the fourth quarter. Brussels Airlines has selected 9in RAVE touch-screen seat display units for economy class and 15in displays for business class.
Harry Gray, vice president sales and marketing at The IMS Company says further details concerning the Lufthansa launch will be made available following a trial of the system this year. Securing an arrangement with the Star Alliance member, however, represents a major coup for IMS, a long-time portable IFE specialist. Lufthansa is a customer of embedded IFE heavyweight Panasonic Avionics. IMS also counts Air Berlin and SriLankan Airlines as RAVE customers, and could announce a fifth deal by the end of Aircraft Interiors Expo.
"We evaluated the systems available on the market today and chose RAVE because it provided the most reliable solution at the lowest cost to own and operate," says Air Berlin chief product officer Thomas Ney.
A new concept in in-flight entertainment, RAVE differs from traditional "server-centric" systems in that each seatback display unit contains all of the content, applications and playback functionality to provide the passenger with AVOD, just like portable solutions. RAVE and IMS's new EDGE portable media players utilize the same core technologies and many of the same components, as well as sharing common R&D and service and maintenance facilities.
Source: Flight Daily News
