American Airlines switches from CBS to NBC

American Airlines, the second-largest airline in the world, is dumping its in-air broadcaster CBS in favour of NBC. The move brings to an end a ten-year relationship between American Airlines and CBS.

Charley Wilson, American Airlines' managing director of external communications and international advertising, says the company, ?felt it was time for a change.?

?When the contract was up for renewal we looked at a number of possibilities to supply video programming on American Airlines aircrafts and came to an agreement with NBC Universal.?

The deal is unique in that NBC will create a special programming package of its content for passengers instead of merely streaming live feeds of its channels, as is the norm.

Advertising sales on the flights will be managed by Brand Connections, a media and marketing company specialising in the out-of-home sector.

Shares in CBS and American’s parent company AMR fell by approximately USD0.50 in response to the news. NBC’s went up by around USD0.25.

NBC is following CBS in taking an aggressive approach to out-of-home media in places ranging from airlines to taxis and petrol stations. CBS is the second-most watched channel in the US, only losing the top spot to Fox last year. NBC comes fourth overall behind ABC, although it does slightly better than CBS in the coveted 18-34 category.