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Look Virgin Airlines turns flights into networking sessions

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Virgin Airlines has tied up with location-aware mobile app Here on Biz to keep their business travelers networking.Announcing the partnership, Virgin Group founder calls it an opportunity for business travelers or entrepreneurs to connect and chat with other business folk on a flight.“While on the road, we let our phones or laptops take up our attention. By doing that, we might miss out on the chance to learn and absorb ideas and inspiration from an unexpected source: our fellow travelers,” said Branson.He shares his own success stories – for instance, the time when Virgin Radio tried to recruit popular British radio personality Chris Evans to join its roster in the 1990s and Branson jumped on his British Airways Concorde flight to New York in an attempt to win him over.The app is linked to a user’s LinkedIn account, and allows the person to chat with other business travelers in the vicinity.Luanne Calvert, Virgin America’s chief marketing officer, said that the ability to connect with other Virgin America travelers in-flight  was a “frequent request”.“The best business connections often happen unexpectedly, and we’ve heard many stories of partnerships and startup ideas being born on our flights,” she said.With the likes of Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Cathay Pacific all offering inflight wireless services, could this be the next thing flights will offer in Asia as well?It depends. While the idea is refreshing, some business travelers are finding their flight hours the only time they get down time from work. This could be a great idea from Virgin Airlines, or just an incredibly annoying one.

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