With its new and official iPhone app, American Airlines joins Southwest as the second major U.S.-based airline to land on a smartphone near you. Also in today’s App Industry Roundup, 37signals acquires Ember and is now offering a free version of Campfire for the iPhone.
The sky is no longer the limit for iPhone apps
The free American Airlines iPhone app, which requires iOS 3.13 or later, offers flight check-in and status reminders, a place to store mobile boarding passes, and a display of terminal maps. The app also allows AAdvantage members to monitor their miles programs from anywhere.
A cool piece of technology also lets users set parking reminders by snapping a photo where their cars are placed. For the layover-weary road warriors, there is also a version of Sudoko to play while sitting on the terminal (or in the clouds on Airplane mode).
Bundling all of these services into one application is a significant departure for American Airlines, which also operates an easy-to-navigate mobile site. Yet as more international airlines release iPhone apps and third party aggregators like Expedia and Tripit expand in the mobile space, American, after months of planning and deliberation, elected for a direct application-based relationship with current and prospective customers.
Expect Delta, United and other major airlines to bring more air traffic to the mobile space in the weeks and months ahead.
37signals acquires Ember, offers free version of Campfire
Fans of the workflow collaborative software Campfire now have a free version of the tool they can download on the iPhone. Campfire developer 37Signals this week acquired the company behind Ember, formerly a third-party Campfire client.
While Ember was marketed for $9.99 per download by its creator, the development company Overcommitted, the rereleased 37Signals Campfire for iPhone is free to download and use for Campfire subscribers. While the camp is not optimized for the iPad, it does work in standard app mode according to the 37signals blog post announcing the transaction.
Last month, 37signals released a free version of its Highrise software on the iPhone. The company also markets the $9.99 Draft sketching application for the iPad.
