Gogo is using its in-flight WiFi to introduce a new communication feature while aboard. Air passengers can send and receive text messages and phone calls during flight using Gogo's iOS and Android app.
Gogo, well known in-flight internet service provider, is offering in-flight broadband internet service for commercial and business aircrafts.
More than 1,900 commercial and 6,000 business aircrafts are equipped with their services. With the latest shift, Gogo becomes the sole provider of Text and Talk feature while aboard a plane.
Gogo's Text and Talk uses the company's in-flight Wi-Fi networks to carry out the text messages and phone calls from passengers' smartphones. This will be possible with free iOS and Android mobile applications. But the company is seeing this new feature more as a platform for sending and receiving text messages than as a voice call feature.
"While we see this as more of a text messaging product for commercial airlines in the United States, the phone functionality is something that some international air carriers and our business aviation customers are asking for," ElDifrawi says in a statement, according to the Verge.
The service is currently limited for business and commercial flights. Although the new service gives a green light to passengers to pick up their phone and strike a conversation, Airlines still have the authority to restrict its usage.
The Talk and Text service is different from usual cellular networks and travelers will not be able to connect to their land-based cellular networks due to safety reasons. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration announced that passengers will be allowed to use their electronic handheld devices during take-off and landing, provided they adhere to placing the phone on "airplane mode." In reference to this, Gogo's latest news brings much relief to long-haul travelers who often miss important calls and messages.
Gogo's latest service does not come along with its Wi-Fi package, it will come separately. The pricing of the Text and Talk service was not announced by the company but it is likely to hit a more affordable price slot considering its great potential. The service is likely to go live on commercial flights in the first quarter of 2014.
