Next generation airline information using consumer devices to keep passengers informed and as an additional channel to market

The airline industries are going through a period of change and face many challenges to keep consumers loyal to their services and to offer differential services with low production cost. The rise of J2ME mobile phones presents an opportunity and a challenge to airline companies, the chance to increase information available to passengers to reduce dissatisfaction, and the challenge of how to produce applications for a wide variety of devices. It also enables companies to offer additional services via an application that is resident on the consumer\´s own phone. Using the security and storage options available on J2ME devices, airlines, and other companies can use mobile phones as a mechanism to enable "least resistance" selling. This paper details how one prototyping exercise demonstrated how J2ME mobile phones, both on the original MIDP 1.0 and the more advanced MIDP 2.0 offered a clear business and cost advantage to one UK based airline. Hopefully by the time this paper is read the prototypes will be functioning systems that are being used by consumers.