United Airlines Offers Customers Free Live TV

Customers can now enjoy complimentary seat back live DIRECTV and movies on more than 200 aircraft

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Jan 30, 2019, 09:03 ET

CHICAGO, Jan. 30, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Just in time for the Big Game, United Airlines today announced that effective immediately more than 100 channels of live television will now be free on 211 Boeing 737 United aircraft equipped with seat back TV, making viewing easy gate-to-gate. In addition to offering free live DIRECTV at more than 30,000 seats, United customers also have access to hundreds of movies and TV shows available on personal devices through the airline's collection on the United app – offering customers thousands of hours of programming in total.

"This year, we will be introducing a series of innovations and improvements designed to help build a great experience for all our customers," said United's Chief Customer Officer Toby Enqvist. "Offering free entertainment, whether it's on seat back TV or on personal devices, is one example of how we are placing our customers at the heart of what we do and helping them to relax and enjoy their flights."

"We're pleased that United is offering customers complimentary access to live TV on more than 200 of its aircraft so customers can feel like they're sitting in their own living rooms enjoying DIRECTV," said Roman Pacewicz, chief product officer, AT&T Business. "Whether they want to tune into their favorite primetime show or their favorite sports team, United customers won't miss a moment with free DIRECTV programming."

Personal Device Entertainment

Over the last year, United has also expanded its personal device entertainment product to aircraft that previously only offered DIRECTV, providing an option for customers to use their phones, tablets or laptops to access a library of more than 280 complimentary movies and TV shows.

Accessibility

Additionally, United has made improvements in its entertainment options for customers with hearing and mobility issues through its Accessible Entertainment menu category available on seat back on-demand systems. Accessible Entertainment offers customers entertainment options by grouping titles that are either audio descriptive or closed captioned under one menu. United currently offers more than 20 audio descriptive movies and TV shows and more than 50 with English closed captioning. Select DIRECTV channels also include closed captioning, subject to programming availability.

About United

United Airlines and United Express operate approximately 4,800 flights a day to 353 airports across five continents. In 2018, United and United Express operated more than 1.7 million flights carrying more than 158 million customers. United is proud to have the world's most comprehensive route network, including U.S. mainland hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Newark/New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. United operates 770 mainline aircraft and the airline's United Express carriers operate 559 regional aircraft. The airline is a founding member of Star Alliance, which provides service to 193 countries via 28 member airlines. For more information, visit united.com, follow @United on Twitter or connect on Facebook. The common stock of United's parent, United Continental Holdings, Inc., is traded on the Nasdaq under the symbol "UAL".

SOURCE United Airlines