Emma Kelly/SALT LAKE CITY
An unidentified avionics manufacturer, widely believed to be AlliedSignal, is conducting a due diligence review of Sony Trans Com with a view to buying the in-flight entertainment (IFE) supplier from Sony.
Sony Trans Com declines to confirm the identity of the suitor, saying only that the company is operating under "a non-disclosure agreement with an avionics company not in IFE". The unidentified avionics manufacturer has only recently started due diligence, the IFE hardware supplier said at the World Airline Entertainment Association show, which took place in Salt Lake City, Utah, from 28 September-1 October.
The consumer electronics giant has received "a lot of interest" in its IFE division, says Randall Lincoln, vice-president of sales and marketing, adding that the Irvine, California-based company has grown consistently over the past six years. Sony purchased the Trans Com division from avionics company Sundstrand in 1989.
Sony Trans Com is the only one of the four major IFE hardware manufacturers not aligned with an avionics manufacturer. Rockwell Collins entered the IFE industry in late 1997 with the purchase of Hughes-Avicom International, while French avionics manufacturer Sextant Avionique purchased a 51% stake in B/E Aerospace's IFE division in January this year, acquiring the remaining shareholding last month. Matsushita, meanwhile, formed a strategic alliance with Honeywell - which is merging with AlliedSignal - at last year's Farnborough air show, with a view to the development of joint passenger communication and entertainment services.
AlliedSignal has long eyed the IFE industry and has conducted extensive studies of the market. The manufacturer was linked with small family-run IFE hardware supplier The Network Connection, but that deal was not concluded.
With avionics manufacturers increasingly positioning themselves to offer equipment from the flightdeck through to the passenger cabin, AlliedSignal is the only major avionics supplier with IFE equipment missing from its product portfolio. The company will acquire passenger satellite communication activities through its merger with Honeywell.
Matsushita in particular is watching developments at Sony Trans Com with interest, as any move into IFE by AlliedSignal would put its own alliance with Honeywell in jeopardy.
Sony Trans Com's interactive P@ssport system is flying with South African Airways, on a single Boeing 747-400, and Air Canada (two Airbus A340s and, from this month, one A330), and will be operational with US Airways next March. The manufacturer's P@ves system, designed for narrowbody types, is operational with 37 airlines, with Sony announcing an order at the show from GB Airways for its new Airbus A320/A321s.
Source: Flight International
