Southwest to introduce Wi-Fi next year

Southwest Airlines reported Friday that it intends to begin a fleetwide Wi-Fi rollout of Row 44’s satellite service beginning in the first quarter of next year, setting the stage for a provider competition between Row 44 and Aircell’s Gogo Inflight Internet Wi-Fi service.

Gogo, which has outfitted several U.S. airlines with Wi-Fi, utilizes a network of ground towers that beam signals to aircraft antennas.

“We have concluded our testing for inflight Wi-Fi and are very happy with both the technical performance of the system and the response of customers who have used it,” said Dave Ridley, Southwest Airlines senior vice president of marketing and revenue management, in a statement.

Southwest said that its passengers have tested the Wi-Fi service with different devices including laptops, iPhones and other Wi-Fi enabled smartphones.

The Row 44 service is supported by satellite provider Hughes Network Systems. The service will enable passengers on global flights to connect to the Internet and even to make VoIP telephone calls in countries and regions were regulatory agencies have granted permission. To date, voice calls are forbidden on all U.S. flights, but some airlines and services are lobbying the FCC and other regulatory agencies to remove the voice ban.