Etihad Airways has just improved the value proposition of its inflight Wi-Fi in two major ways for flights operated by wide body aircraft. Not only is Etihad introducing free inflight messaging, but the airline is also improving Wi-Fi pricing.
In this post:
Etihad adds free messaging via Wi-Fi
Effective immediately, Etihad has introduced free inflight messaging for members of the Etihad Guest loyalty program. Travelers can enjoy unlimited messaging throughout the flight on popular apps, including WhatsApp, Messenger, and WeChat, among others. To minimize bandwidth usage, presumably you won’t be able to send pictures or videos.
In order to be sure you’re eligible for this, you’ll need to be a member of Etihad’s free loyalty program prior to the flight. You’ll then need to log into your Etihad Guest account to access the Wi-Fi.
While it’s not as good as JetBlue’s free Wi-Fi with no strings attached, it’s certainly nice for all travelers to be able to message for free, as it’s a good way to pass the time.
Etihad improves value proposition of Wi-Fi packages
Effective immediately, Etihad has significantly improved the value proposition of its Wi-Fi offering, by lifting data caps from packages. Going forward, there will be “Chat” and “Surf” packages, with the only pricing variable being whether a flight is under seven hours or over seven hours:
- A “Chat” package costs $2.99 for shorter flights and $4.99 for longer flights; this is free for Etihad Guest members
- A “Stream” package costs $9.99 for shorter flights and $19.99 for longer flights; this is free for first class passengers and Etihad Guest Platinum members, and 25% off for Etihad Guest Gold members
So, what exactly has changed here? Previously Wi-Fi packages were charged based on a combination of time and data usage. For example, the most premium data package lasted 24 hours and allowed up to 350MB of data to be used, at a cost of $29.99.
Suffice it to say that the new plan is a much better value — you’ll get unlimited Wi-Fi with no data caps for $19.99.
Bottom line
Etihad has very nicely improved the value proposition of its inflight Wi-Fi. Not only has the airline introduced free messaging for Etihad Guest members, but the airline has also lowered pricing and eliminated data caps on paid packages.
Good and reasonably priced inflight Wi-Fi can make a big difference for many in terms of the passenger experience, so I’m very happy to see this change from Etihad.
What do you make of Etihad’s Wi-Fi changes?
Flying with EY in 2 days. Thrilled to learn of this news! I am looking forward to being able to get some actual work done during the flights. Not an easy proposition in the past with high prices and data caps. Good job Etihad!
This is kind of a nice new trend: free messaging. E.g. Iberia has had it for quite some time now (free for iB+ members flying in any class -you can join onboard- and Business class customers if not using/having an IB+ account)
Do they still have paid gogo option? Or has it gone away with the new package announcement?