- Singapore Airlines (SIA) is using SMS (short message service) technology from Santa Clara, California-based startup Unimobile as a way to offer worldwide mobile flight alert services to its customers.
The Unimobile messaging platform also has the capability to offer mobile originating messaging such as customer querying.
SIA customers can go to the airline's website and specify the SMS alerts they would like to receive, such as alerts of flight departures, arrivals, delays or gate changes.
"Once passengers authorise Singapore Airlines to deliver flight information to a specific mobile phone or mobile device, the 'find me, follow me' capability built into the Unimobile platform enables the alerts to be delivered no matter where you are," says Vasudev Bhandarkar, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Unimobile.
SIA customers can receive alerts for up to three flights, and also select the times and time intervals for the alerts. By using Unimobile's messaging platform and global network, SIA is now able to reach its customers worldwide irrespective of which carrier or network they use, according to Yap Kim Wah, senior vice president of products and services at SIA.
Unimobile delivers SMS text information to mobile device users across wireless networks in about 130 countries by interfacing with the Internet gateways of the carriers. The company runs the Unimobile Intelligent Network, which serves as a backbone to deliver wireless content and other value added services to Unimobile users.
The Unimobile MMP (Mobile Messaging Platform) at the client end offers tracking and message delivery confirmation modules, which allow administrators to track the message path, message status and delivery details. The SIA service will cover about 30 countries where the airline has services, according to Bhandarkar.
Besides upfront licence fees for some modules of the MMP and professional services fees for integrating the messaging platform with SIA's current information technology infrastructure, Unimobile will also charge SIA fees per message.