Alright, lets pat the pockets and run through the mental checklist one last time before security: Passport? Check, front pocket. Headphones? Definitely in your backpack. Boarding pass? Uh oh. Where’d that boarding pass go?
Oh, that’s right! It’s on your phone – because you, like a rapidly increasing number of other people, opted to have it sent straight to your handset. Security scans the barcode right off of your handset’s display, and you’re on your way with one less thing to lose.
Trinity Mobile, one of the leading companies behind the mobile ticketing push, is today announcing a 1200% year-over-year increase with their mobile boarding pass offerings.
In 2008, Trinity Mobile saw 50,000 users opt-in to receive mobile boarding passes rather than the more traditional options. In 2009, this number shot up to 600,000. That’s still a drop in the bucket compared to the number of people flying with ol’ fashion boarding passes each and every day – but considering that that growth is almost entirely driven by users picking the option when its offered to them (without any real marketing push by Trinity or the airlines they’ve partnered with), it’s pretty impressive.
Jupiter Research backs up the fact that the trend is skyrocketing; according to their 2010 Mobile Ticketing report, over 2 billion mobile boarding passes will be sent out in 2010, with that number expected to blast up to 15 billion by 2014.
Anecdotally, I can honestly say I’ve also noticed a massive uptick in mobile boarding pass usage. As someone who travels somewhat frequently, I’ve seen at least a handful of people going that route on each trip I’ve taken over the past few months – especially on flights in Europe. I’ve yet to be offered a chance to do it myself – but given that I’m the type of person who clutches on to their boarding pass like it’s ice water in Hell, I’d jump on it on a heartbeat.
What about you? Have you used a mobile boarding pass yet? What were your experiences?
[Image Credit: Paramount Pictures]