Introducing the 'mile-high Pods'

Airplane passengers could soon be synching their iPods with in-flight entertainment systems following a deal between six airline companies and Apple.

Air France, Continental, Delta, Emirates, KLM and United will integrate iPods into their entertainment systems so passengers can watch their own videos, stored on their iPods, on the seat-back screens.

Apple is also working with Panasonic Avionics to bring iPod integration to more airlines in future.

The first iPod-ready seats will be available in mid-2007, Apple said.

Research from ABI Research earlier this month claimed that of those iPod users thinking of buying a new MP3 player, 58 per cent are "somewhat likely" or "extremely likely" to spend their money on a Zune - the competing MP3 player made by Microsoft.