This is a valid question given that US airline Delta this week announced it would be putting 250 Apple iPads in three new restaurants at its Minneapolis-St Paul (MSP) airport hub.
The installation is part of a wider project to eventually have over 4,500 iPads at three of Delta’s main airports in the US over the course of the next 12 months.
The initial 250 in MSP alone will rise to 2,500. New York’s La Guardia has already started featuring the tablet devices in concourse and lounge areas.
At MSP, passengers will be able to do the usual browsing the web, checking flight status, playing games and on social networks, etc, as well as allowing users to order meals through what the airline calls a “intuitive visual menu”.
Such moves do beg the question as to what is the motivation for introducing such a major initiative (in Delta’s case through a partnership with OTG, an airport food and beverage operator)?
Officially, Delta says it’s all about providing  a “unique travel experience”, which is obviously worthy of praise given that some airlines might be accused of not thinking about the customer “journey” during a trip at all.
In the world of cut-throat margins and competition in the airline industry, presumably there may have been some kind of business case at the outset beyond just improving the customer experience?
Maybe not.
But perhaps consumers are actually drawn to such improvements by an airline, especially regular users of the airport hubs in question (in the same way that customers might be attracted to another airline because of its high-quality in-flight entertainment)?
So, your chance to vote:
[poll id="32"]
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About Kevin May
This is no different than the hundreds of things airlines do to create a good customer experience, from IFE, to check-in procedures, to mobile apps, to decent food.
I, for one, really enjoyed Delta’s LGA experience — they have done a great job with that terminal, and it’s memorably nicer than most. It will not solely lead to choosing Delta, but like many other things, it’s part of the product story.
And unlike lots of things that can often go wrong or break, having a nice airport to walk through with iPads is a reasonably consistent experience that I can count on. That alone makes it a valuable perk!
The first time I saw Delta’s iPads at LGA I kind of freaked out and didn’t know what on earth was going on — it creates quite an impression when you walk through the D terminal and see dozens of them all around.
But I agree w/ Evan, they proved quite useful and did build some personal goodwill toward Delta. I grabbed one to get driving directions (inadvertently echoing the other Tnooz piece about G Maps being the top travel app) and do basic weather checks, etc.
I think the jury’s out on whether they’re appropriate for restaurants, though. I saw several 4-tops in the terminal using them in silence, creating a rather depressing impression and making me wander to the Nathan’s hotdog stand instead.
Evan and Pete say it well.
To expand on it, I’ll propose that the specific issue of iPad hardware in a restaurant is just part of the point. Delta and OTG are looking at the total trip experience for points of traveler engagement across what I’ve referred to as the “60-hour cycle” – both in and outside the flight round-trip – to deliver a better experience.
All else fairly equal – meaning the primary points of price and schedule – maybe a better total experience could lead to shorter term ancillary revenue and longer-term brand loyalty.
Starting back in late 2009 (before the iPad even took over the world!), I put forth an approach with a few basic elements:
1) Use mobile technology and digital entertainment to drive ancillary revenue in a departure from the traditional IFE value chain
2) Position passenger markets as a customer acquisition channel for strong consumer digital entertainment brands in a cutthroat battle for “living room share” and to deliver a more compelling flight experience
3) “Think outside the flight” with pre-flight, mobile, and location merchandising of digital entertainment, relevant trip and destination services, and hotels to expand revenue opportunity
Tnooz published an article I wrote on Delta’s deal with Amazon (and Gogo) recently, which summarizes how this is unfolding:
http://www.tnooz.com/2012/05/31/news/airlines-and-online-retailers-in-and-outside-of-travel-a-golden-opportunity/
Here’s hoping the total trip experience and economic value for all parties will continue to improve…
Any other thoughts?
I’ll answer the question: “Would you pick an airline because it installed iPads in the airport restaurants?”
No. For three reasons:
1) Price, schedule and loyalty program remain the key drivers of airline choice. Amenities like an iPad are fine components to help build the overall brand but in isolation it would not be an important factor in my airline choice. Its simply a “nice to have”.
2) When I’m in a restaurant, sometimes its good to be offline every now and then!
3) I carry my own iPad when I travel and for security I’d rather use my personal device with all of my applications and accounts.