Budget air travel just got more accessible as Cebu Pacific Air announced a partnership with SafeZone allowing flyers to browse and book flights online sans data charges.
SafeZone is the sponsored mobile data access platform of Voyager Innovations, which is owned by Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. It allows free Internet browsing for partner websites.
In this case, subscribers of Smart, SmartBro and Sun for both prepaid and postpaid accounts can browse CebuPacificAir.com or the CEBmobile app, and book flights without being charged for data access.
“This partnership with Cebu Pacific opens up a world of anytime, anywhere digital convenience for the Filipino consumers. It’s a very good example of how companies are using mobile and digital platforms to create a seamless and holistic experience for their customers,” Benjie Fernandez, chief operations officer at Voyager Innovations, said in the statement.
Candice Iyog, Cebu Pacific vice president for marketing and distribution, said the partnership makes booking more convenient and less expensive for passengers.
Cebu Pacific is the newest company to join the SafeZone portal (www.safezone.ph), a community that offers free data access to various partner sites. According to digital audience and brand analyst Effective Measure, SafeZone is now the leading local mobile community site in terms of unique page views as of end-March.
SafeZone is part of PLDT’s initiatives to provide more Internet-based services to customers. Currently, it provides daily free access to its partner sites in banking, travel, health, food, leisure, information and entertainment.
The SafeZone mobile app also gives users free access to popular brand and social networking sites such as Facebook Lite, Twitter and Instagram.
Cebu Pacific, the country’s biggest budget airline, offers flights to a network of over 90 routes covering 64 destinations, such as in Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and the United States. It is owned by the Gokongwei family’s JG Summit Holdings.
Opening up access would help Cebu Pacific bolster its passenger numbers. Cebu Pacific CEO Lance Gokongwei earlier said the firm plans to carry about 20 million passengers in 2016, which is 11 percent higher than the volume in 2015.