United Airlines has built a custom, native Spotify app for its seatback displays, allowing passengers to log directly into their personal accounts and stream their own libraries, playlists and video podcasts while cruising at 35,000 feet. The feature is powered by Starlink satellite Wi-Fi, which the carrier is currently installing across its entire fleet.
The rollout marks a significant shift in in-flight entertainment. Older airplane systems were designed around the assumption that flights had no internet access, so movies and music had to be stored directly on the aircraft. With Starlink connectivity, travelers can now stream content live from the internet, much as they would at home.
United first announced a partnership with Spotify a little over a year ago, initially exploring how to preload music content onto seatback screens. Mark Muren, managing director for product marketing at United, said in an interview that the airline ultimately decided a more personalized experience was the logical next step. "It's supreme, perfect personalization in that it's that customer's actual account, all of their material available there," Muren said.
Grant Milstead, United's vice president for digital, said the integration would not have been possible without Starlink. Independent tests have found that Starlink's service performs better than most other providers, largely because of the sheer size of its constellation, which now numbers more than 11,000 satellites in low Earth orbit. Because those satellites sit far closer to the ground than geostationary ones, the signal travels a shorter distance, resulting in much lower latency.
"You know, for us, having fast, low-latency connectivity has been the enabler," Milstead said. "Without Starlink, we couldn't generate that living-room-in-the-sky experience."
Coverage was another deciding factor. "One of the reasons that we chose Starlink is for the global connectivity, even in the poles for some of our transatlantic and transpacific flights," Milstead said. He added that the bandwidth, coverage and reliability have been strong enough for passengers to stream on seatbacks without interruptions, sparing the airline some of the complex engineering it had to do in the past.
Passengers can stream Spotify either through the seatback display or on their own mobile devices. More apps are on the way: United is looking to partner with other third-party streaming services, and Muren said the Spotify deal will serve as a blueprint for future integrations. "Spotify has been a great partner," he said, adding that he can imagine a world where any platform customers use in their living room or during their workday has a place at United.
United is not alone in this thinking. American, Qatar, Emirates, Lufthansa, Air France and British Airways are also installing Starlink on their planes, while Delta Air Lines is partnering with Amazon's LEO project and JetBlue is sticking with Fly-Fi powered by Viasat. Faster, more reliable Wi-Fi may soon be the industry standard rather than an edge.
Even so, United believes it can keep winning customers through better technology. "Starlink being a differentiator for United is a moment in time," Milstead acknowledged. "We know that fast Wi-Fi is coming for every airline. I think the mobile app is a pretty significant differentiator for United, [and] I think you will see the seatback screen be a differentiator in the future when connectivity is the expectation."
