The Aspirations of JetBlue to Be a Travel Tech Company
Photo Credit: Image of planned Mint class studio seat for JetBlue's planned transatlantic service. JetBlue Airways sees wants to add a business line: travel technology, said chief digital and technology officer Eash Sundaram. JetBlue
Skift Take
What's the best strategy for a corporation? Some years, it's trendy for consultants to advise companies to focus on their "core competency." In other years, it's all about diversifying. JetBlue's effort to diversify into enterprise tech will be worth watching.
JetBlue Airways sees itself adding a business line that is different from flying planes — namely, travel technology.
During a little-noticed talk late last week, JetBlue's chief digital and technology officer Eash Sundaram outlined a plan for JetBlue to refashion itself as a tech company and lifestyle brand, too.
"Selling an air ticket is, by far, what airlines focus on, but if we turn ourselves into a travel tech company, we'll have a lot more products we can offer," said Eash Sundaram, chief digital and technology officer, when speaking at Software Intelligence Forum 2021.
The executive’s comments need context. In 2020, JetBlue derived only 7.5 percent of its $2.95 billion in operating revenues from non-airline revenue. It’s still mainly an airline.
Sundaram said JetBlue is looking at efforts to "future-proof" its business by diversifying beyond just flights.
"We look at future-proofing JetBlue in two ways," Sundaram said. "One is, 'Do we have products that can s
