Interview with Virgin America's Richard Branson
Sir Richard Branson is a bit of an adventurer, something of a gadget freak, and a very, very rich man. His Virgin Group runs everything from record shops and mobile phone providers to airlines and hot air balloons. Last week, he came to the United States to celebrate the first flight of Virgin America, a sort of high-end low-cost airline that is currently making very limited flights out of New York's JFK airport, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and a few cities. Engadget was aboard and had the opportunity to ask the man about the technology on the new planes, the success of Virgin Mobile in the US, and even the thought of people yakking on their cell phones during the entire flight:
Engadget: We know Internet is in the works for Virgin America, coming in 2008, what about the "dreaded" possibility of in-flight cellphone usage that is so debated currently?
Branson: Well, the Internet, I'm delighted to say, we're going to introduce next year, and I think that once we have the Internet, I don't think phones will be that needed. I think people will be able to communicate with people on the ground through the Internet. We've gotten phone in Virgin Atlantic and we find they don't get used that much, but there is enormous demand for Internet, and that's why we're rushing ahead for that.
For the rest of the interview, go to Engadget.
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