Cheaper Surfing... While Flying
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Boeing Co. (BA) announced it will cut the cost of its in-flight Internet service and offer four channels of television to its users.
The Connexion service is available on nine international airlines. No U.S. carriers offer it, according to Boeing's Web site.
The new pricing is effective January 31. The cost of 24 hours of unlimited access, including connecting flights, is being reduced $3 to $26.95. Hourly rates begin at $9.95 for one; three hours will cost $17.95. "We've listened closely and are making changes that provide added flexibility at price points more favorable to our customers," David Friedman, vice president of marketing and direct sales, Connexion by Boeing, said in a statement.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Beginning Monday, Jan. 23, all airlines equipped with Connexion may also begin offering passengers live global TV through the service. Programming will include BBC World, EuroNews, Eurosportnews, CNBC and MSNBC.
Meanwhile, the Beijing Railways Bureau announced multimedia information and Internet access will be available on most Chinese trains in the coming years. A service trial has begun on a group of trains using 30 of the country's railways, according to a Chinese news service, Xinhuanet.
Local TV Stations Show Net Ad Growth
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Growth in local television's online advertising was strong in 2005 and the outlook for 2006 is for local online advertising to grow by as much as 39 percent, according to a new survey released by the Television Bureau of Advertising (TVB). The research, conducted by Borrell Associates Inc., showed local television stations increased their online ad share an average of two percentage points over the past 12 months. In 2005, stations' local Web revenues accounted for a six percent share of all locally spent online advertising. Auto and health care were the most popular categories for ad sales.
Naked News Does Japan
One of Canada's leading exports is reportedly opening for business in Japan, with subtitles. Naked News, featuring anchors and reporters who take off their clothes while doing the day's news, are being sponsored by Sunrise Corp., which Reuters describes as a company which specializes in sales of goods and services over the Internet.
Sunrise's CEO, Takuya Uchikawa, indicated the target market for the programming is mobile subscribers, with a goal of 10,000 users by the end of the year. At the start, newscasters will disrobe to their underwear. Uchikawa indicated he hopes to be able to see how far Japanese obscenity broadcasting laws can be bent, Reuters reported.