SITA’s MEXIA Acquisition to Reinforce Biometric Automation Tech

Airport IT solutions provider SITA has acquired MEXIA Interactive, a passenger analytics specialist.

The latter, a private company based in Canada, was founded in 2011, and has developed technology designed to predict passenger bottlenecks and queues in airport facilities. It also assesses metrics pertaining to passengers’ retail activities, helping airport administrators to find additional revenues sources.

MEXIA’s passenger analytics solutions are complementary to a major trend in which SITA is actively involved, biometric passenger processing. The company announced in June that it would work with authorities at the Orlando International Airport to implemented a biometric boarding system this year, and recently published survey data illustrating the upward trajectory of airport biometrics. Passenger analytics technology can be used to further boost the kind of automation enabled by biometric, curb-to-gate passenger identification systems.

In a statement announcing the acquisition, SITA CEO Barbara Dalibard explained, “Airports increasingly need comprehensive and sophisticated technology solutions that help them meet the continued growth in passenger numbers while improving the overall airport experience,” adding later, “With the acquisition of MEXIA we will strengthen our airport portfolio, providing our customers with automated predictive analytics and detailed passenger flow management throughout the airport.”

SITA’s announcement did not indicate the value of its acquisition of MEXIA.

–

November 12, 2018 – by Alex Perala