Baseball Everywhere

Southwest Airlines

There were no television screens, the flights attendants handled the safety demonstration with no video, and seated around me were multitudes of young people with an iPad, Smartphone, laptop, or some portable electronic device. We had just reached 10,000 feet from our takeoff at San Diego International Airport. The attendants voice comes on the intercom, “You can now use your electronic devices.”

Casually I opened the inflight magazine and begin to thumb through the articles. What’s this - Free WiFi complements of DISH Network, watch inflight TV on your portable device. “Baseball Everywhere” is the commercial you hear repeatedly when MLB advertises their AT Bat App, they are not kidding.

As of July 2, 2013 - “DISH (NASDAQ:DISH), the leading pay-TV provider, today announced “TV Flies Free” marking the first time TV entertainment is free for passengers aboard Southwest Airlines® (NYSE:LUV). Beginning today for Southwest Customers using iPhone®, iPad® and iPod touch®, or most other Internet-ready personal devices, DISH is providing free access to live TV and up to 75 on-demand shows on the airline’s more than 400 Wi-Fi-enabled aircraft.”

This truly is the age of the portable electronic device. Very cool, and simple - just turn on your device, touch settings, choose Southwest WiFI, close settings, open Safari, and choose which station to watch. Lori had mentioned to me before leaving home that FOX Saturday baseball started at 10 a.m. and I would probably miss it. Well, not today - just click on FOX 5 and it truly is baseball everywhere.

Now, to the younger generation that take these devices for granted, this innovation may seem rather boring. But for this naive baby-boomer who vividly remembers getting only three stations (ABC, NBC, and CBS), from an antenna mounted on the garage, on a black-and-white console TV the size of a dresser this truly is science fiction come to life (see space technology).

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