Real-Time Flight Information Market to Soar

In the aerospace industry there a number of consumer trends that are causing a paradigm shift away from the status quo. One of the key factors for change is the growing accessibility of flight data.

Whether business and leisure travel numbers are up in the coming year or not, flight data provider FlightView anticipates that the market for real-time flight status and airport information will grow in 2010, as mobile travel services gain traction and become more sophisticated. As a leading innovator in the emerging space for travel information, FlightView cites two trends driving this opportunity: First, travelers will continue to demand better, more useful information to make more informed decisions about their plans. Second, they’ll use a mobile device to retrieve, view and act on that information.

A recent report from PhoCusWright found that 62 percent of leisure and 71 percent of business travelers use a mobile device with internet access while they are traveling. In 2009, hundreds of mobile travel applications and web sites were launched, including FlightView’s own award-winning applications for the three largest smartphone vendors and highest-ranked flight tracking mobile web site. These numbers are likely to increase as smartphone vendors, travel management companies, airlines, airports and others seek to improve service and gain competitive advantage.

“The one thing that all travelers share is an overwhelming need for information that makes their travel experience better,” said Mike Benjamin, president of Boston-based FlightView. “Nothing does that like knowing where their flights are and how that information affects their plans –it’s an incredible value-add that a wide variety of players in the travel market can use to their advantage.”

Based on its success in building partnerships that capitalize on the potential for real-time flight information on mobile devices, FlightView expects growth in several key areas:

• Travel management companies and online travel agencies such as Travizon will move quickly to provide a more holistic range of services. Enhancing mobile offerings by integrating real-time flight tracking tools is an easy and fast way to give travelers what they want – after they’ve booked their trip: the ability to take matters into their own hands and make the changes they need and get to where they’re going.
• More airports will follow the lead of FlightView customers BWI and The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey with Web site upgrades. Birmingham and Little Rock airports bring information to customers’ mobile devices, tapping the industry’s most trusted resource for real-time flight tracking as the technology provider.
• Advertisers will move aggressively to seize the opportunities with the captive – and lucrative – travel demographic that relies heavily on mobile travel services. Targeted ads tied to flight information, ranging from local restaurants and attractions to recommended destinations for the next trip, will help travelers make the most of their trips – or delays.