Nicole Wait Jour 3004W Section 009 TA: Okyun Kim Final Project Part 2: Research Document Role:

Journalist pitching a story idea to Travel + Leisure Magazine targeting an audience of frequent travelers. Focus: An angle that discusses the recent implementations of technology to help make air traveling more convenient.

A. Monitoring strategies are very important to use to learn about my topic because it will help me systematically keep track of information, evidence, opinions, attitudes, and also help me further develop my idea. 1.) Observation Strategies One observation strategy that I would use is people watching (Ethnographic Research) at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport where I would conduct routine physical observation. It is a major airport, as it serves over 33 million passengers a year (mspairport.com). It would be helpful to observe technology in action. During an observation at MSP Airport, I would be looking for passengers who use/rely on items such as their cellphones or iPads to successfully get to their flight. It would be useful in telling me how many people actually do this. Also, I would observe and look for passengers who bring along with them laptops, iPads, and other forms of technology. Observing the amount of passengers who need to take out their laptops at the security line could be helpful in telling me how many people bring them while they travel. Another observation strategy that I could use for my story would be to conduct participant observations while traveling through an airport and on an airplane. In this case again, I would most likely do this at MSP Airport while traveling somewhere. As a participant going through all of the situations that my targeted audience may go through I can get a firsthand perspective what types of implementations have been made at the airport and airplane to accommodate travelers and their technological gadgets. I would also get a much more personal idea of how travelers react to these implementations, which would potentially give me more ideas of what I need to cover in my story. I would be able to draw a conclusion based on actual experience/observation.

2.) Tracking Strategies One tracking strategy that I could use to observe the progress of the information I want for my story would be to set up a Google Alert search, which is a filter tracking tool. The terms I would include in my search query would be new airline technology. I would choose to receive the alerts as they happen because I check my email often and want to stay up to date as much as possible. I will be able to receive stories that include the technology aspect of traveling on airplanes, airports, which is perfect for my purpose. By customizing my own Google Alerts search it gives me a simple way to filter the information I want down the exact specifics. Its useful because I wont be receiving useless bits of material. A headline of one of the articles I received through my Google Alerts Search is FOCUS: IFE sector looks to the future. This article talks in depth about how the airline industry is changing in order to keep pace with travelers desire to use

technology on airplanes and more specifically, their own personal devices. It provides useful facts about my topic. For example more than half of Virgin Americas Airline passengers bring a laptop onboard and another interesting fact from the article was that Delta Air Lines has invested $2 Billion to install Wi-Fi on its aircrafts. There is so much information in this article that would benefit and cushion my story idea. Another option for a tracking strategy that I could use that I think would really help me with my message would be to subscribe to Travel Leisure Magazine and/or a very similar magazine Cond Nast Traveler and to also subscribe to their RSS feeds, which they both have. (http://www.travelandleisure.com/feeds, http://www.cntraveler.com/rss). Subscribing to these magazines and their RSS Feeds will help me because I would be getting all the same information that the other subscribers are getting, which is my target audience. Knowing about the sort of material that is being presented to them through the medium that I plan on presenting my story will be give me a better idea and perspective on how to go about doing my story.

3.) Social Networking Strategies A social networking strategy that I found was a Facebook page called Fast Travel selfservice for airline passengers. (http://www.facebook.com/#!/FastTravel). Material posted on this Facebook page that would be useful for my topic includes links to articles about the latest implementations of technology to make air travel more convenient. They also have a main link in the info section for their actual website, which contains more in-depth information on specific implementations and the airlines associated with them. The links are useful because they are often links to different websites than their own and broaden my sources and give me new ideas that I had not thought of before. For example they have an article posted about the beginning stages of American Airlines self-tagging. I had never heard of this before and absolutely goes with my topic.

B.

Reading List Materials Scholarly journal articles 1.) Piccoli, G., Brohman, M., Watson, R. T., & Parasuraman, A. A. (2009). Process completeness: Strategies for aligning service systems with customers service needs. Business Horizons, 52(4), 367-376. doi:10.1016/j.bushor.2009.03.001. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp1.lib.umn.edu/ehost/detail?vid=25&hid=18&sid=355658 7a-98e1-448e-aec8962c1c65827f%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=buh& AN=41242975 Annotation: This scholarly journal article discusses the trend of customers demands for better and expanding services within the travel industry. It specifically talks about the steps of transaction, process, alliance, and agility in implementing these new services to seek better customer services for their customers. It shows a guide of the plans of to go about selecting and implementing certain technologies.

2.) Airlines Testing Paperless Cockpit. Information Management Journal [serial online]. September 2011;45(5):6. Available from: Business Source Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed April 22, 2012. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp1.lib.umn.edu/ehost/detail?vid=16&hid=18&sid=355658 7a-98e1-448e-aec8962c1c65827f%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=buh& AN=66913255 3.) Abeyratne, R. (2005). Electronic Ticketing in Air Transport--Commercial Strategies and Consequences. Journal Of World Trade, 39(6), 1095-1118. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp1.lib.umn.edu/ehost/detail?vid=24&hid=18&sid=355658 7a-98e1-448e-aec8962c1c65827f%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=buh& AN=19498223 4.) "Delta Goes Wireless." Industrial Engineer: IE 36.12 (2004): 22. Business Source Premier. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp1.lib.umn.edu/ehost/detail?vid=25&hid=18&sid=355658 7a-98e1-448e-aec8962c1c65827f%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=buh& AN=15157433

5.) Patel, Prachi. "The Well-Connected Traveler." IEEE Spectrum 46.10 (2009): 22. Business Source Premier. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp1.lib.umn.edu/ehost/detail?vid=25&hid=18&sid=355658 7a-98e1-448e-aec8962c1c65827f%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=buh& AN=48072947

Popular/trade magazine articles 1.) (Trade) Woyke, Elizabeth. The Next Step For In-Flight Wi-Fi: In Air Entertainment. Forbes.Com (2011): 41. Business Source Premier. Web. 19 Mar.2012. http://www.forbes.com/sites/elizabethwoyke/2011/07/11/the-next-step-for-in-flightwi-fi-in-air-entertainment/ Annotation: This would be useful for my scenario because it provides a more technological specific aspect. It talks extensively about Gogo, which is the most used in flight Wi-Fi provider. According to this article over 202 million airline passengers will board flights with Gogo Wi-Fi. It talks about the future of air travel and many of the possibilities coming soon for Gogo. It will extend a portfolio of online services including social networking updates, movies, magazines, shopping and information about travel. I can take this specific example of Gogo and relate it to an all-around demand for in flight internet and entertainment.

2.) (Popular) BUSH, MICHAEL. "Virgin America." Advertising Age 82.9 (2011): 26. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp1.lib.umn.edu/ehost/detail?vid=12&hid=18&sid=355658 7a-98e1-448e-aec8962c1c65827f%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=ufh& AN=58704679

3.) (Trade) Salazar G. AirCell flying high with airline Internet service. RCR Wireless News [serial online]. September 8, 2008;27(27):18. Available from: Business Source Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed April 22, 2012. Retrieved from http://www.rcrwireless.com/article/20080905/tower/aircell-flying-high-with-airlineinternet-service/

4.) (Trade)Curtis W. The Golden Age of Air Travel. Forbes [serial online]. September 27, 2011;:96. Available from: Business Source Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed April 22, 2012. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp1.lib.umn.edu/ehost/detail?vid=16&hid=18&sid=355658 7a-98e1-448e-aec8962c1c65827f%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=buh& AN=65461354

5.) (Trade) Dingle S. iFly. Finweek [serial online]. March 2012;:18-19. Available from: Business Source Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed April 22, 2012. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp1.lib.umn.edu/ehost/detail?vid=16&hid=18&sid=355658 7a-98e1-448e-aec8962c1c65827f%40sessionmgr12&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=buh& AN=73793148

Government Documents 1.) Balloug, James J.: Use of Portable Electronic Devices Abroad Aircraft. [Washington D.C.:] Advisory Circular, Federal Aviation Administration [2006]. Web. 27 March 2012. http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC%2091.21-1B.pdf Annotation: The information found in this document could be useful for my topic because it gives me a solid overview of what exactly the rules and regulations are for portable electronics at the airport and on airplanes. Since my topic is centered on many of these electronic devices, I should know what guidelines go along with each device to ensure that the readers of the article are completely informed on what the procedures are. Also, I can rely on this information as correct and precise, since it comes from the Federal Aviation Administration.

2.) Smallen, David.: U.S Airlines and Foreign Airlines U.S. Passengers Continue to Increase from 2009. [1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590.:] U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Public Affairs [2012]. Web. 24 April 2012. <http://www.bts.gov/press_releases/2012/bts017_12/pdf/bts017_12.pdf>

3.) U.S. Air Travel On Time Performance. [1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590.:] Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Airline On-Time Data [2011]. Web. 24 April 2012. <http://www.bts.gov/programs/webinars/2012_04_13/2012_04_13.pdf>

4.) Mosley, Bill.: Flight Delays, Mishandled Bags, Consumer Complaints Increase in 2007. [Washington, D.C.:] U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Public Affairs [2008]. Web. 24 April 2012. < http://www.bts.gov/press_releases/2008/dot017_08/pdf/dot017_08.pdf>

Internet Sites 1.) Gogo In Air Online. Retrieved April 18, 2012 from http://www.gogoair.com/gogo/splash.do Annotation: The website for Gogo inflight internet provides information about how their broadband internet service, streaming video, and other connectivity devices while on an airplane. Their services are offered on every major U.S. airline which comes to a total 6000 aircrafts. According to the website By allowing travelers to get online, in air, Gogo keeps them connected to life. 2.) Flight Global. Retrieved April 24, 2012, from http://www.flightglobal.com/ 3.) I-track. Retrieved April 23, 2012, from http://www.i-trak.com/home.aspx 4.) Traceable Luggage Tracker. Retrieved April 23, 2012, from http://www.tracemeluggagetracker.com/what-we-provide 5.) WorldMate. Retrieved April 24, 2012, from http://www.worldmate.com/ 6.) Travel Tech. Retrieved April 22, 2012, from http://www.traveltechnology.com/

Books 1.) Nawal K. Taneja (2002). Driving Airline Business Strategies Through Emerging Technology. Ashgate Publishing Limited.

Annotation: This book discusses how the evolving technologies within the airline industry play a major role in its development. It specifically talks about how new and

evolving technology helps in reducing costs, enhancing revenue, and improving customer service and customer safety/security. It gives me good information on how crucial these technologies are in the success of the airline industry. 2.) Shervin Ahmad Beygi (2011). Airline planning under uncertainty. UMI Dissertation Publishing.

C. Interviewees 1.) Melissa Scovronski, Manager, Public Affairs and Marketing at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Office Phone: 612-726-8170, After Hours Pager: 1-888-487-6934, melissa.scovronski@mspmac.org, http://www.linkedin.com/in/melissascovronski

Melissa Scovronski works as the head of the Marketing and Public Affairs department for the Metropolitan Airports Commission/MSP International Airport and executes communication plans to connect external and internal customers of the airport. According to her Linkedin site, she has five years experience in media relations, public affairs, digital and print advertising, website creation and customer service. Over the past five years she has worked on digital and online communications that includes managing an update to the MSP Airport website and the implementation of MSP's presence on the goHow Airport mobile app. She has the perspective of how the actual airport works in implementing new forms of technology and how the airport communicates to their customers about it. Im sure she could provide me with information of how much the airline is changing in order to satisfy travelers desire for a technology friendly airport. Since she does work the Public Relations department for MSP Airport, she may have a bias in favoring and complementing the airports implementation of technology, so I would definitely need to keep that in mind.

Questioning: I would ask have a line of questioning that had a focus on specific changes and implementations that go into accommodating travelers at a major airport. In what ways has the airline/travel industry changed in the past five to ten years? In what ways has the average airline customer changed in the past five to ten years? What have you and your team or MSP Airport done in order to fulfill travelers needs for a compatible environment that keeps up with their

technological requirements? How have you reached out to your customers in communicating the changes that the airport has made to meet the growing technological world we live in? Looking to the future, what kind of advancements do you see the airline industry making? How will they continue to adapt?

3.) Bill Mosley, Public Affairs Specialist at US Department of Transportation, Phone: (202) 3664570, http://www.linkedin.com/pub/bill-mosley/11/472/1aa Bill Mosley works as an employee for the United States government in the US Department of Transportation. His position is titled as a Public Affairs Specialist. He is the person of contact in relation to released information about airport functionality in the U.S., including delays, mishandled baggage, and consumer complaints. So he is well informed about the most common failures in the airports and will surely have information and ideas about how and if there are ways he thinks that airports can implement technologies to avoid these things. I do not think that his positioning would have any strong bias towards anything because he is a federal employee. I think he will have accurate and straightforward information based off the knowledge he has gained while working the department of transportation. I think he would be a trustworthy interviewee because it is his duty as a public relations employee for the U.S. government to be fair and accurate. He is working for the people. Questioning: The type of questioning that I would pursue for this particular interview would be a predominantly informational seeking one and to also clarify any widely misconceived information about airport functionality in the United States because as a federal employee for the U.S. Department of Transportation he most likely is knowledgeable of the truth in what goes on in airports. Some questions that I would ask him would include: Do you think there is room within the airline industry to improve customer service and satisfaction with personal devices for the customers? Is this something that is considered within the airport and airline regulations? Does it add any risk or concern? Are these personal devices completely functional within the airlines? Which specific ones do you think have made the greatest difference/improvement?

3.) Ashley Black, Senior Manager - Corporate Communications at Delta Air Lines, Phone: 1-404715-2554, https://twitter.com/#!/AshleyNoir, Delta Air Lines, Inc. 1030 Delta Boulevard Atlanta, GA 30320-6001

Ashley Black works as the director of communication strategies for Delta Airlines and is specifically involved in information technology and airport customer service. She is a great person to interview because I can get the perspective of what an actual airline is thinking and how they perceive new technology implementations. She has been working in this position for five years. She would surely know about how a major airline like Delta is communicating to their customers that they are making certain accommodations and she would also be someone who would know what customers rely to the airline about what they want. It could be possible that she would take a position that would be in favor of the Delta Airlines and since she is a communication specialist for the airline, I should probably assume that it is second nature for her to relay information about the airline in a positive way. Also Im sure she wouldnt mind having Delta Airlines mentioned in an article that will be featured in Travel & Leisure. Questioning: The questioning that I would pursue for this interview would include asking about what types of changes has the airline made to accommodate passengers from a technology perspective. How important is it to the success of the airline to make these accommodations? I think since I am actually talking with an employee of a private company (airline) to get a business perspective of my topic.

4.) Norm Rose, President at Travel Tech Consulting, Inc. and Senior Technology Analyst with PhoCusWright, Inc., Phone: 650 345-8510, Fax: 650 345-7590, norm@traveltechnology.com, http://www.linkedin.com/in/traveltechnology, Travel Tech Consulting, Inc. 951 Old County Road #157 Belmont CA, 94002. Norm Rose is an expert in technology trends in the travel industry with a deep and long background in the industry. His experience includes working as a Corporate Sales Manager for United Airlines, a Corporate Travel manager for Sun Microsystems, and now his current position as President of Travel Tech Consulting Inc. According to the companys website, Rose is a seasoned travel industry visionary who provides a clear picture of the future of travel and has significant knowledge of the changes in the airport experience or how mobile and social media is reshaping the planning and booking of travel. His company thrives on providing a comprehensive set of marketing, business strategy and technology procurement services to high tech and travel industry clients. I think Norm Rose would be great person to gain insight from because it is clear that he well known within the travel industry and possesses a great deal of knowledge in this specific area Im covering. Since I already have contact for someone from a major airport, major airline, and the government Ross would add a different perspective and

insight for my story. He seems like he is a person who has a desire to share his research and findings. Questioning: Because Mr. Rose is well-known within this discipline and has special knowledge, I would ask him about his understanding of emerging technologies and travel trends and how they are shaping the industry. I would also ask him if he has any specific or memorable stories in his work/research about the implementations of new technology within the airlines. How does he view the future of these technologies going and what should frequent travelers know about the industry? How much is at stake for airlines in implementing these technologies?

D. Organizations 1.) Federal Aviation Administration, 1-866-TELL-FAA (1-866-835-5322), Federal Aviation Administration 800 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, DC 20591, http://www.faa.gov/, James Brough (781) 238-7027 This agency provides raw data and information on airline passengers, such as the percentage of Annual Passenger Boarding on different types of commercial jets. It also has compilations of data on specific airports. The airport facilities data in this category will be especially helpful for my topic. They also have a section of information on major airport development in the country. This will supply me with acurate information on what types of changes or advancements airports are making, which may coincide with my topic of implementation of personal technologies. The reason I chose the Federal Aviation Administration agency is because I know that it is part of the United States Department of Transportation and therefore I recognize that it has the responsibility to create accurate public records since it is an agency within the federal government. Although a lot of the information and data is dense and meticulous, I know that I can rely on it as correct material. The info I collect from the FAA will help give my story credibility because I will be basing the new technology implementations on the numbers and types of airline passengers and the new technologies capability of effectively functioning within an airport setting. Ways in which I might monitor information available from the agency is to follow their twitter feed (https://twitter.com/#!/faanews) to get the most recent updates. I could also Like their Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FAA). The first time I went to their Facebook page, I

instantly found a spot-on article on next generation technologies in airports posted as an external link (http://airportmagazine.net/).

2.) Delta Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Inc. 1030 Delta Boulevard Atlanta, GA 30320-6001, Phone # (404) -715-2600, http://www.delta.com/, Contact: David Hanahan (Program Manager, Internal Evaluation at Delta Air Lines) On the main website, they provide a link for their Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/delta) and a link for their Twitter page (https://twitter.com/#!/Delta) which both offer information updates on the latest news about Delta. They also provide a link on their main webpage for their own Fly Delta App for customers cellphones. The reason I chose this particular institution is because Delta Airlines is the largest passenger carrying airline in the world, providing air transportation for over 163,000,000 million travelers in 2011, according to Wikipedia. They will most definitely have information on the latest innovation in airline technology. I can research on which implementations they have already tried and what the airlines future technology innovations consist of. It will important to get this information from a major U.S. airline to have their perspective included in my article.

3.) Apple Inc., 1 Infinite Loop Cupertino, CA 95014 Phone # (408) 996 1010 or Apple Media Helpline (408) 974-2042 media.help@apple.com, http://www.apple.com/ Press Contact: Amy Bessette Apple abessette@apple.com +1 (408) 862-8012 From the apple website the Press Info page has a link to their RSS feed to receive the most up to date information. I chose this institution because Apple is one of the leading companies in the newest technology innovations. They have created numerous APPS and devices that are implemented into the airline industry such as iTravel which supports travel check-in applications, such as digital boarding passes, as well as checking flight status. Information from Apple on how and why they are creating so many of these APPs that are accessible at airports on airplanes. What they are planning for the future? How do they make sure these apps and devices are airline accessible?

4.) MinneapolisSaint Paul International Airport, Phone: (612) 726-5555, Terminal 1-Lindbergh 4300 Glumack Drive St. Paul, MN 55111, http://www.mspairport.com/ Contact: Patrick Hogan, Director of Public Affairs and Marketing Office Phone: 612-726-5335 patrick.hogan@mspmac.org This institution is a major airport that serves close to 33 million passengers a year, according to the FAA and using this specific airport is significant because it was recently voted as the best airport in America by Travel + Leisure (http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americasbest-and-worst-airports/13). So it will be good to use this airport as an example because the readers of this magazine are at least somewhat familiar with it. The type of information that I would want to get from MSP Airport is how they have implemented new technologies into their airport to make the necessary accommodations for travelers? And to also ask about what they do to work together with the FAA, the airlines that go through there hub and the companies that make the devices, to make sure they successfully implement these. How important is it for MSP airport to keep up with the technologies and demands of todays frequent traveler? Does MSP Airport feel like they have kept up with these technologies or are they trying to keep up? MSP Airport would definitely give a different perspective than the FAA, Delta, and Apple. They are focused on serving the travelers coming through the hub and that sometimes can be small amount of time, so it is important to make a fast and positive impression to fully serve them. They will give the perspective of new technologies play a part in airports that can be related to others all around the world.

E.) Survey Pho Cus Wrights Traveler Technology Survey 2010, http://www.tourismtechnology.com/tourismtechnology/cms/documents/files/Traveller%20Tec hnology%20Survey.pdf, written and researched by Carroll Rheem, The goal of Pho Cus Wrights Travel Technology Survey was to understand travelers adoption levels and attitudes toward new travel platforms, features, and functions preferred by innovations in technology, and to see how travelers put these attitudes into action. Understand how fast travelers are adopting these technologies helps businesses determine how the industry demands are changing. Some significant findings from the survey include the discovery that consumers are indeed ready to go mobile with 43% of cell phones using smartphones and 35% of mobile users

planning on using their phone during their travels. Those are pretty large numbers of the population. 53% of online travelers use a laptop. 61% of people surveyed who are 34 and younger are considered early adopters in technology adoption. I think the survey is pretty reliable as it lies out gives all of the necessary information to deem it an honest study. It provides specific demographic information about the surveyors. They surveyed a total of 792 U.S. citizens who travel for leisure or have plans to and was conducted May 25-28, 2010. The error interval is +/- 95% at 95% confidence level. The only significant concern I have is the total amount of people surveyed of 792. I think it would be a lot more accurate if it was larger population sample. These findings will help inform my reporting because I now have some solid and concrete numbers about how travelers in the U.S. population feel about the new technologies and how they plan to use them.