Airlines Need You (and Your Gadgets) to Kill Those Seat-Back Screens

With a wireless gadget inside the carry-on bag or pocket of almost every passenger, airlines see a big opportunity in the near future: ditch seat-back screens and stream in-flight entertainment over the plane’s Wi-Fi network. For the first time regional jets would be able to offer real entertainment, and other carriers could ditch those expensive, grimy, fragile flatscreens.

Since the end of the seat-back screen era could mean better movie choices and huge savings, Delta, United, and Southwest are now encouraging the bring-your-own device ethos, with some airlines even offering free TV and movies as an incentive. A report this month by Osurv, a mobile survey firm, found that 87 percent of travelers consider the BYOD pitch a cost-saving effort by airlines—and yet many still prefer using their own gadgets to jabbing a seat-back screen. “Superficially, BYOD is a cost-cutting initiative,” says Jad Meouchy, Osurv’s founder and chief executive. “However, the long-term vision is Netflix in the sky.”