Partnering with Virgin America

Oct 19, 2009 15:56 GMT  ·  By
Google has partnered with Virgin America to offer free wireless Internet on some flights
   Google has partnered with Virgin America to offer free wireless Internet on some flights

It's still October but Google is already handing out presents. The company has announced that it has partnered with Virgin America to offer free wireless Internet for all the flights on WiFi-enabled planes for an extended period during the holidays. The move is bound to make some travelers very excited especially considering that Internet on planes was unheard of just a few years back.

“The holidays can be full of dates and details to remember, and it's easy to get stressed out somewhere between planning a long distance, multi-generational family gathering and combing the Internet for the latest impossible-to-find furry contraption for your toddler,” Jeff Aguero, product marketing manager at Google, wrote. “We know the holiday season seems to come earlier every year (sorry, Halloween), but before you make your final travel plans, we're excited to let you know that we're partnering with Virgin America to provide free WiFi.”

The program will last from November 10, 2009 to January 15, 2010 during which time WiFi access will be sponsored by Google on Virgin America flights. Internet access on Virgin America is $13 per flight, not exactly expensive but with web access becoming ubiquitous and WiFi mostly free, having to pay anything for it may seem a little out of place. Still, when faced with the alternative, especially on long flights, most people would gladly pay the extra fee.

In-flight Internet has become more common than a few years ago when it was basically unheard of and WiFi signals were supposedly interfering with the planes’ complex electronics. Most likely, the Internet connections were interfering with the airlines' wallets but the price has come down somewhat thanks to systems like the one Virgin uses from Gogo Inflight Internet. The system uses a network of ground towers, basically just modified cellphone towers that point up at the sky rather than at the surrounding area providing passengers with a relatively slow but decent connection.