Television On Board

[Ukridge]

First I would like to belatedly wish all the Former Colonists a pleasant St. Florent day. I know this saint of the 4th would be pleased to learn of all the celebrations made on his behalf. I am sure though that he would probably be humbled that such is your reverence for him that you even bring out the fireworks and lay aside work for a day. I can think of no other reason for such festivities and am touched by your respect for such a long past saint.

More than one poster has remarked on the importance of in-flight entertainment. Just curious what the broader readership thinks. Frankly I do not like it and life in fear of having to board an aircraft where they have a satellite uplink with television. The last thing I wish is to be bombarded by commercials and base inanities for hours on end. I realize though that if each person has his own screen that I could avoid this by merely not watching. If it is on a main screen though, then it is a problem. One only has to look at the visages of the fellow passengers to realize the power of this mind-numbing device. People gaze at it endlessly with the mute mien of a field beast.
On the other hand my opinion has mellowed a bit. How am I to say that someone who is flying from Ulan Bator to London to South America and already has been reading for 20 hours thank you and would prefer to change pace and watch something on the tube? What about those on a long flight with children (even the best well behaved have limits) that would like to watch a little something? What about the vacationer who is taking a week or so away from the grindstone and has well earned time to escape a little?
I always though United offered a good selection of programming on the 777 between LHR and Dulles so I have no complaints. I just cringe at the idea of having television piped in as it is such an ‘in-your-face’ medium. We all know that an endless stream of commercials will accompany it so I do not see it as a benefit.
Although we have discussed this topic before, I like Lufthansa’s efforts. For the flights to and from other European cities they have a very wide selection of newspapers on board and in the waiting areas. They are available for all classes and one may take a few (i.e. IHT, FT, and DW) I know that the publisher probably pays for these, but someone at LH arranged this service and it is a nice touch.
Thoughts?

 

[46Driver]

I for one would certainly like a personal TV with multiple channels (and headphones so as not to disturb anybody else.) You can only read for so long, and that trip from LA to Sydney is 14 hours long. The personal TV's give variety - which I believe is what the customer wants. I'm waiting until they get uplinks and can access the internet inflight....

 

[The Ronin]

I'm still waiting for the Casino and showgirls....

 

[mweiss]

A PTV as a passenger choice (i.e., it can be turned off by someone who does not wish to partake) is a wonderful thing. Of course, St. Florent celebrants are quite renowned for their rather monotonic prayer at the altar of personal choice (although many are equally interested in depriving other celebrants from having the same opportunity). This makes such an offering much more likely to sell in the US than in other countries where conformity is generally regarded with higher esteem than individuality.

On a related note, I suspect that the increasingly Spartan nature of Ryan in Europe would fall rather flat on the other side of the pond. Given the frequent four-plus hour trips in the US, I doubt most would be willing to dispense with the more basic amenities.