Virgin Blue's 'Name the Airline' Competition

[trooper]

Sorry... shoulda been more specific... "In earshot of me"...

Already got that damn jingle going round and round in my head!!!!:mrgreen:

All it took was that one slogan........... My first jet flight experince was on a TAA 727.... I say "jet" cos as a very young child I was taken on a SYD-Kempsey? DC3 flight....

 

[dajop]

Heres a crazy possibility for you all...could Qantas whip out Jetstar as a competitor on the AUS-SFO routes should VAA choose that route.

Wonder if they've thought about a hybrid model .... Qantas operating F/J/Y+ cabins at the front of the plane. And JQ operating a pay for meals, blankets and entertainment service at the back of a plane.

 

[stuartfaz]

I understand the point but I think QF would be shooting themselves in the foot trying to pull a stunt like that. I do not think that JQ has much of a reputation and trying to incorporate it into non leisure routes would be asking for trouble. Then again I may also be totally wrong.

Many people fly QF because of the status and the service. I will certainly not be forced into flying JQ internationally. If JQ was my only choice then I will find a *Alliance FF program and carrier and try to get status that way. Any domesic trips will then be on whatever provides the cheapest airfare as I do not think there will be any *Alliance alternative domestically.

The JQ brand has gone way beyond a joke.

Agreed.

Regardless, QF will need to find some way to take on VAA before VAA get some control over the route (I think currently QF's only direct flight is SYD-SFO, whereas VAA may go from BNE and MEL as well as SYD.)

Whether, god forbid, JQ is that way will remain to be seen. You'd think QF wouldn't try to just undercut them and hope that'd scare em off. This project is going to make Virgin as close to your full-service carrier as possible on the AUS-USA routes, especially considering the Virgin Blue and possibly Virgin America codeshares. You could find yourself booking PER-JFK with DJ .

Chuck in the star alliance question and it's hello threat.

On the star alliance topic, another crazy hypothetical:

What would QF do, should DJ and affiliates join the star alliance? I believe star are courting DJ again, like they did back in 03 i think.

That may just cause panic stations over at QF. Not just with the new airline, but across the board.
Given their push towards business flyers, and now starting 2-class O/S operations, it's got to be now or never, doesn't it?

Just thinking aloud .

 

[stuartfaz]

Wonder if they've thought about a hybrid model .... Qantas operating F/J/Y+ cabins at the front of the plane. And JQ operating a pay for meals, blankets and entertainment service at the back of a plane.

That'd be interesting. I know some American carriers have LCC-ised their economy operations domestically. Whether it'd take off with key long-haul routes is another matter, especially with QF. Personally, I don't see them Jetstar-ising their international economy operations...yet...

In the end, they'd probably have to go with one or the other. Keep in mind VAA probably won't be your JQi type of airline. It's going to be closer to QFi than to JQi, so QF will probably use themselves.

Then again, you never know...

 

[simongr]

Wonder if they've thought about a hybrid model .... Qantas operating F/J/Y+ cabins at the front of the plane. And JQ operating a pay for meals, blankets and entertainment service at the back of a plane.

There was a suggestion by some scamp in one of the A380 thread that you could have upper deck QF and lower deck JQ

 

[JohnK]

Chuck in the star alliance question and it's hello threat.

On the star alliance topic, another crazy hypothetical:

What would QF do, should DJ and affiliates join the star alliance? I believe star are courting DJ again, like they did back in 03 i think.

That may just cause panic stations over at QF. Not just with the new airline, but across the board.

There is something missing in Australia and that is *Alliance or Sky Team presence domestically. If some carrier would provide that affiliation and QF does not step into line then that is where my loyalty would go for certain.

I am more interested in status than cheap airfares but if that is going to cost me much more money then I will need to find alternatives. Right now Australia is geared towards Oneworld and Oneworld only. The choice is easy and that is QF.

 

[Bucks]

Aww damn, I wanted to suggest Virgin Pacific but thought it wouldn't be allowed. Oh well.

If you'll all allow, I'd like to whittle these down using the 'Deal or No Deal' method.

Matilda Blue NO DEAL - 1. please... 2. international airline - nobody else gets the reference
V Australia Airlines DEAL - that's quite a catchy name
Australia Blue NO DEAL - don't like it
Virgin Pacific DEAL - makes sense with Virgin Atlantic, DJ may have to lobby Singapore Airlines for the 'Virgin' rights though
Amelia Blue NO DEAL - look at the description, the airline's not going to be just a Aus - US service.
Didgeree Blue NO DEAL - urgh... cornier than a packet of Doritos.
Liberty Blue NO DEAL - see Amelia Blue
Virgin Australia NO DEAL - not really creative, is it?

Only 2 a chance are Didgeree Blue and Amelia Blue. Have a look at what the ‘hints’ are below. I reckon all the others are about as original as sliced bread.
Didgeree Blue might sound corny but it does roll of the tongue better than any of the ones listed above and would should certainly raise curiosity. As for Amelia Blue it just about fits everything listed below in point form. Not too sure what is meant above re :NO DEAL thate airlines not going to be just an Aus - US Service.” That’s exactly what it is going to be for the 1st few years. Once the name is established who cares.
To help you with your idea's here are a few handy hints:
The 'name':
doesn't necessarily have to include the words 'Virgin' or 'Blue'
should stand out from the crowd in the USA and Australia
should raise curiosity
could be Australian, Aussie or simply might look great on the side of a plane
could sound great as in "I'm flying downunder on ......" "I'm flying to the States on ...."
should fit well with Virgin Blue and everything we stand for.
Keep in mind, the airline will operate flights between Australia and the United States to begin with

 

[Bucks]

Only 2 a chance are Didgeree Blue and Amelia Blue. Have a look at what the ‘hints’ are below. I reckon all the others are about as original as sliced bread.
Didgeree Blue might sound corny but it does roll of the tongue better than any of the ones listed above and would should certainly raise curiosity. As for Amelia Blue it just about fits everything listed below in point form. Not too sure what is meant earlier re :NO DEAL the airlines not going to be just an Aus - US Service.” That’s exactly what it is going to be for the 1st few years. Once the name is established who cares.
To help you with your idea's here are a few handy hints:
The 'name':
doesn't necessarily have to include the words 'Virgin' or 'Blue'
should stand out from the crowd in the USA and Australia
should raise curiosity
could be Australian, Aussie or simply might look great on the side of a plane
could sound great as in "I'm flying downunder on ......" "I'm flying to the States on ...."
should fit well with Virgin Blue and everything we stand for.
Keep in mind, the airline will operate flights between Australia and the United States to begin with

 

[stuartfaz]

I reckon all the others are about as original as sliced bread

I agree with you. Personally though, I'm not concerned with the originality of the name, just so long as it sounds professional. Amelia Blue and Didgeree Blue are just way too gimmicky for my liking.

Not too sure what is meant earlier re "the airlines not going to be just an Aus - US Service.” That’s exactly what it is going to be for the 1st few years. Once the name is established who cares.

Keep in mind though it would only be an established name in the US and Australia, and not in any other potential market. These guys want to fly to Japan and India after establishing US operations. Personally I don't think people in Bangalore will get the 'Amelia Blue' reference.

Any name, in any business, should be well and truly future-proofed, so it can work in any potential market. Thats why I still think VAA will win.

Original, maybe not. Professional and adaptable, yes.

 

[oz_mark]

I agree that only two names on the list should really be considered. But this is the Virgin group so anything could happen!

 

[Evan]

I'm going down under on Amelia Blue
Sounds a bit dodgy doesn't it.

I am sure everybody has seem the image of cough (Russian i think, i assume its real) and Virgin planes together ?

E

 

[Bucks]

I agree with you. Personally though, I'm not concerned with the originality of the name, just so long as it sounds professional. Amelia Blue and Didgeree Blue are just way too gimmicky for my liking.



Keep in mind though it would only be an established name in the US and Australia, and not in any other potential market. These guys want to fly to Japan and India after establishing US operations. Personally I don't think people in Bangalore will get the 'Amelia Blue' reference.

Any name, in any business, should be well and truly future-proofed, so it can work in any potential market. Thats why I still think VAA will win.

Original, maybe not. Professional and adaptable, yes.

Point taken. However I think Virgin group will be way more interested in a gimmicky name rather than something un-original that everyone is predicting. Just look at the way they came into the Aus market with the bright red aircraft and the uniforms and personalities of their staff. I was really surprised that there weren’t any more original names in the finalists. I don't know for sure but I think there would have been dozens if not hundreds of submissions for the other 5 entries (apart from Didgeree, Amelia and V Australia) and the finalists were just the ones that had the best explanations. the image I have of Virgin is innovative and cutting edge. I had put an entry in and in retrospect it was nearly as cringe worthy as ‘Kangablue‘.

 

[stuartfaz]

Point taken. However I think Virgin group will be way more interested in a gimmicky name rather than something un-original that everyone is predicting.

If this was purely a Virgin Group venture then it'd be more likely than not we'd see something 'wacky and fun' like Virgin Blue was back in the day. Remember though that this isn't a sole Virgin Group venture. It's a Virgin Blue Holdings venture (of which the Virgin Group owns 25%), and hopefully, if Virgin Blue has learnt anything from their recent business push, it would be that you don't need to be zany and gimmicky to succeed.

Then again, anything can happen when Virgin are involved...

 

[stuartfaz]

Just thought you all may want to know a development on this...

Reports are out today that Virgin Blue have registered the business name Australia Blue Airlines for use in their international operations.

This won't be confirmed until Virgin's Sydney announcement on July 26, so for now (for example, in the USA Department of Transportation application) they are referring to the airline as Virgin Blue International Airlines.

 

[Mal]

Just thought you all may want to know a development on this...

Reports are out today that Virgin Blue have registered the business name Australia Blue Airlines for use in their international operations.

As I posted in another thread this morning, I am 95% sure that Australia Blue is the chosen name.

australiablue.com and australiablue.com.au are registered to a Brisbane Law firm closely associated with Virgin Blue.
The trademark Australia Blue is pending registration for airline type activities (actually a lot more, including loyalty schemes etc) to the same law firm.
The company names Australia Blue Airlines and Australia Blue Holdings are registered.

Hmmm. Now the interesting thing is that all of these registrations appear to have taken plane around April...

 

[kpc]

Hmmm. Now the interesting thing is that all of these registrations appear to have taken plane around April...

...the implication being the "naming the airline" competition is just a publicity / marketing stunt as the name already had been decided prior to the competition commencing!!:shock:

 

[Mal]

Here's the finer details:

Domain Name: australiablue.com.au
Last Modified: 18-May-2007 03:41:42 UTC

Domain Name.......... australiablue.com
Registration Date.... 2007-04-13

Trade Mark Details
Word: AUSTRALIA BLUE
Lodgement Date: 22-MAR-2007

(The above three were applied for by the same person using their Brisbane law firm details. The law firm's website indicates amongst other previous highlights "Virgin - we have acted for the Virgin group on the establishment and structuring of its core operations in Australia - Virgin Blue and Virgin Mobile." and from what I can see appear to be the legal firm that represents DJ )

Name AUSTRALIA BLUE AIRLINES PTY LTD Reserved Name
Application Date: 10/04/2007

Name AUSTRALIA BLUE HOLDINGS PTY LTD Reserved Name
Application Date: 10/04/2007

(It should be noted that the use of "X Airlines" and "X Holdings" is similar to company structure already used for Virgin Blue)


The way I see it is that DJ had this name in mind for the airline and pushed down that path. The competition was there to see if anything innovative/better came along that they could use and to raise more awareness of the airline.

Anyways, this could all be red herrings. It's all public details, so I'm not really letting any cats out of their respective bags or finding anything anyone else couldn't find if they wanted to.

 

[d15.in.oz]

The competition was there to see if anything innovative/better came along that they could use and to raise more awareness of the airline...

Well spotted! Just shows business can’t get away with the old school marketing management in the 21st century.

The point is mute, but I still liked the name “Red, White & blue”. With one side of the plane painted in a fancy flowing Stars’n’Stripes-ish montage morphing into the Aussie “Union Jack, Federation Star & Southern Cross” as you moved from left to right, then the same (left to right) on the other side…so you end up with Bits of the US flag on one side of the tail, and bits of the Aussie flag on the other side.

 

[Mal]

Well spotted! Just shows business can’t get away with the old school marketing management in the 21st century.

Well the competition's rules do state: "While we will select a winning entry we may not use the selected name as the name of the airline or as the name of an aircraft. This decision depends on many factors and will be at our discretion."

The announcement will be interesting on July 26th.

When was the first flight planned to the U.S? Never know, I may actually try to be on it. Missed out being on the first Pac Blue flight to CHC because they moved the start date forward a couple of weeks after I'd already booked the "first" flight! :shock:

 

[codash1099]

...the implication being the "naming the airline" competition is just a publicity / marketing stunt as the name already had been decided prior to the competition commencing!!:shock:

Well not really. It's not unknown for an organisation to pre-emptively register names, web sites etc well in advance of the business launch just to ensure that they have it covered. In fact, I'd be surprised if they haven't registered other names (perhaps in the name of other related entities).

That's not to say that Australia Blue won't end up being the name - I just don't think it's a lay down misere.