August 17, 2005 – WITH just over a month to go to the World Airline Entertainment Association show, the signs are that the 2005 event could be one of the most interesting ever in terms of new product announcements.

Two companies say they will unveil new IFE systems just before or during the four-day show, which opens on September 20, while a third has given preliminary details of a new product and might reveal more in the course of the event.

Californian-based IMS plans to announce a new version of its PEA handheld on the eve of WAEA. British company Phantom Media says it will be showing an embedded audio/video-on-demand system called Bluebox. And e.Digital, best known for its work on APS/Wencor’s market-leading digEplayer handheld, has just announced that it is developing a system of its own under the label DVAP (digital video/audio technology platform).

e.Digital’s intentions emerged on Monday, when CEO Atul Anandpura announced plans to develop what he described as “a new digital video/audio technology platform (DVAP) based on further augmentation of our MicroOS and a powerful new processor.” MicroOS is e.Digital’s proprietary multimedia operating technology, designed to manage functions such as voice recording, AM and FM reception, audio/video storage and playback, wireless communications, LCD drivers and interfaces, audio and video codecs, and digital rights management.

Anandpura said that DVAP would take the form of a finished product with a high-resolution LCD touchscreen, a graphical user interface, embedded magnetic card reader, Internet and VoIP communications capabilities, content security provision, and RFID for tracking and theft control. e.Digital plans to aim DVAP not only at IFE applications but also at the healthcare, cruise line and car rental markets.

If DVAP comes to market soon, it is likely to find itself head to head with the new IMS offering. “The e.Digital specification is very interesting,” comments IMS’ Michael Childers. “It goes some way towards describing the platform we plan to unveil just before Hamburg.”

That announcement should be well worth waiting for, since the PEA version currently on offer already features a touchscreen, card reader, Internet connectivity, powerful content security and RFID. IMS also plans to address a similar range of markets outside IFE.

London-based content specialist Phantom Media says that its Bluebox embedded system will have “market-defining” per-seat costs, achieved by combining the latest IT and electronics technology with lessons learned from the handheld IFE market. The result, Phantom says, is a system able to exceed the functionality of existing fixed AVOD products while offering significant cost and weight savings.

Content delivery can be controlled both from the individual seat and centrally from crew master terminals. Capabilities include full AVOD, gaming, interactive moving-map, data-capture facilities, and connectivity interfaces.

“We approached the design with a view to the impact the system might have on content logistics and fees,” comments Phantom creative director Stuart McGeachin. “In the past too much focus has been applied to the hardware, so that many airlines were taken unawares by the true costs of moving to AVOD.”

Phantom sees its embedded approach as a logical next step on from handhelds, particularly for airlines unable to cope with battery logistics or unwilling to compromise on cabin service functionality. “Bluebox leapfrogs the the current crop of handhelds now being offered in embedded form,” says McGeachin.

Though Phantom plans to offer a full turnkey solution, Bluebox has been designed to be non-proprietary, so that many aspects of the system could also be supported by the airline or its third-party suppliers.