Roger Matthews, Managing Director of GoMedia, an on-board infotainment systems developer for transport operators, talks about the successful impact National Express coaches has experienced since launching the GoMedia-developed VUER system a year ago
National Express coaches launched its GoMedia-developed on-board infotainment system VUER (View, Unwind, Enjoy, Relax) last November. Working with the operator, our initial concept was to revolutionise the on-board experience for National Express passengers, bringing world-class entertainment to UK coach travel for the first time in a bid to significantly increase passenger satisfaction. We are very pleased with how our service has been received one year on, reflected by National Express scooping the Gold Award for Innovation at the UK Coach Awards in May for VUER, and are looking forward to developing the service and working with National Express in making journeys even more enjoyable.[wlm_nonmember][…]
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VUER is the name of the app which acts as a portal for passengers to access more than 100 hours of premium content, including Hollywood blockbusters, TV boxsets, Sky and Sky Sports News headlines, a NOW TV service and much more on their own smart devices. Once on-board a National Express vehicle and connected to the app, passengers can stream content (which is downloaded to a locally-hosted server) through the free on-board WiFi infrastructure. This process also frees up bandwidth, making it easier for passengers to work or browse the internet on-board as there will be significantly less streaming from external sources.
Since its launch, VUER has had more than 1,000,000 unique users and has been downloaded more than 100,000 times. From our passenger surveys we know that customer satisfaction for passengers using VUER is 87%, by comparison passengers not aware of VUER only have a customer satisfaction score of 80%.
The average National Express journey is two and a half hours long; enough time for a couple of episodes of a popular sitcom, a gripping drama or a feature-length film. In fact, since launch, the most popular content consumed by passengers has been the regularly refreshed Sky and Sky Sports News updates. These are short video snippets compressed into manageable clips with familiar presenters/news articles and headlines taken from Sky’s website, keeping passengers up-to-date as they travel. In terms of film and television, the most popular titles over the year have been Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation, Despicable Me 2, David Attenborough’s Light on Earth and Soccer AM.
The service recently underwent a significant content update, whereby reality TV network Hay U (home to programmes such as ‘Keeping up with the Kardashians’, ‘Real Housewives of Orange County’ and ‘Botched’) was installed, along with AOL’s live interview series BUILD and time-sensitive ‘Deal of the Day’ offers from Amazon – providing passengers with an attractive ecommerce opportunity and National Express with an additional revenue stream, as each purchase made results in a monetary kickback to the operator. We make it a top priority that content is kept fresh and updated regularly, as it will not only lead to satisfied passengers coming back to National Express, but will also attract new passengers through word-of-mouth.
We still work closely with National Express, ensuring the VUER service runs smoothly and remains attractive to passengers with relevant and updated content. Vinay Parmar, Customer and Digital Experience Director National Express, said of the service: “We are thrilled with how the award-winning VUER app has been received by our passengers and are looking forward to making National Express journeys better still in the future. Our aim was to work with GoMedia to transform the way in which millions of people experience coach travel and by providing passengers with a premium on-board entertainment service, we feel that they are now getting the absolute maximum out of their journeys.”
GoMedia is seeking to provide on-board infotainment systems to more coach and bus operators, adding to its portfolio of some of Europe’s leading train operating companies, including Virgin Trains, Eurostar, c2c and TransPennine Express.[/wlm_ismember]
