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Technology has always had a strong relationship with the auto industry but it’s only recently that the full potential of this partnership is being realized. We are now seeing a new generation of cars on our roads that offer a new and enhanced driving experience.
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GfK 2012
DRIVING DISRUPTION IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
GfK 2012
Back in the 1980s, many relished that hour every week when they ’d switch on the TV program ‘Knight Rider’ to watch ‘The Hoff’ drive around in a black sports car. Not only did the car look good, but it could speak with the driver, pinpoint locations using satellite technology and drive itself to those locations. It also let the driver communicate with colleagues via video conferencing and advised on the coolest places to hang out. A truck that acted as a central base could track the car’s movements and process the data (known as telematic information) to advise on optimum driving style, driver and car health. The Hoff was also given local intelligence to help him to save the girl from the bad guys. It certainly offered an exciting sci-fi vision of what a car may be able to do in the future. And some recent, interesting developments could see some of these fantasies become a reality.
Tech adoption to dateMuch of the technology just mentioned has been around for a while but has taken a long time to be adopted by automakers. So what has been stopping them? A key reason is product development lifecycles. Car templates (particularly the internals) only get refreshed every 6-10
Technology has always had a strong relationship with the auto industry but it’s only recently that the full potential of this partnership is being realized. We are now seeing a new generation of cars on our roads that offer a new and enhanced driving experience.
By Sam McCloy and Jonathan Shingler
years. Alongside this, governments are wary of new technology integration, introducing legislation to limit technology usage in order to limit driver distraction. Finally, adverse economic conditions have inhibited development beyond
the normal chassis/body/engine refreshes. Tech adoption has been largely limited to iPod and Bluetooth integration, and is usually thrown in as an afterthought.
TECHTALK - DRIVING DISRUPTION IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
THE INCREASING ROLE THAT THE
LATEST SMARTPHONE, NOTEBOOK AND HOME
ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGIES ARE
PLAYING IN CONSUMERS’ LIVES ARE DRIVING CHANGE
IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
GfK 2012
Telematics: getting to know the driverMeanwhile, integration of telematic information in cars is starting to happen, as demonstrated by the showcasing of Ford’s Evos car in late 2011. Cloud-based connectivity, coupled with automated and customized system calibration enables the car
to recognize the driver, monitoring his or her driving style, as well as basic health information such as the heart rate. All of this telematic data is transmitted and saved to the cloud via 3G or 4G/LTE connectivity which is embedded in the vehicle. As such, the car can ‘get to know’ the driver over time, adjusting its set-up to match the driver’s
However, things are changing. The increasing role that the latest smartphone, notebook and home entertainment technologies are playing in consumers’ lives are driving change in the automotive industry. Consumers now expect to have such technologies integrated seamlessly into their cars. Consequently, to stay competitive, automobile manufacturers must anticipate such consumer technology needs to help them ‘future-proof ’ the latest models, and through that to instigate a long-overdue shake-up of the industry.
The rise of infotainmentInfotainment is an area where such changes are occurring. Car companies are forming partnerships with innovative technology brands. For example, Audi is using NVIDIA’s latest mobile quad-core Tegra 3 processors and Sierra LTE modules to power its in-car systems. The possibility of integrating these technologies with Android or Windows Mobile-based operating systems opens a whole new world of in-car application services.
Obviously, Apple and Google have had plenty of success with their App Stores and the tablet market has widened application remits to make more use of larger screens. These changes will naturally evolve within the automotive industry as apps are developed to specifically meet driver and passenger needs. This will help to provide seamless transitions from home to car to work, and back again. Software and app upgrades can also be used to help disrupt the long 6-10 year car development cycles.
TO STAY COMPETITIVE, AUTOMOBILE
MANUFACTURERS MUST ANTICIPATE SUCH
CONSUMER TECHNOLOGY NEEDS TO HELP THEM ‘FUTURE-PROOF’ THE LATEST MODELS, AND
THROUGH THAT TO INSTIGATE A LONG-
OVERDUE SHAKE-UP OF THE INDUSTRY
TECHTALK - DRIVING DISRUPTION IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
GfK 2012
speed control). This does, in some respects, go against the 20th century image of the car offering a sense of freedom. Although the reality of car ownership has long moved away from that notion, it is still used by many car advertisers.
So, with the possibility of telematics being used as a means of further control by insurance companies and governments, it remains to be seen how it will impact the industry, and whether that will ultimately be a positive or a negative for consumers. With all this in mind, new technology needs to be carefully managed as it becomes integrated into cars, and the ability to ‘opt-in’ will very likely play a role in this.
Looking aheadOn the whole, convergence of the technology and automotive industries offers some exciting possibilities with developments in infotainment and sophisticated integration with consumer lifestyles as well as communications. Nevertheless, as real-time tracking data become readily available, governments, regulatory bodies, and insurance companies will be able to control driver behavior further. Whatever happens next, there will inevitably be a period of adjustment, and ultimately, the driving experience is likely to be radically altered by the end of the decade.
For further information, please contact: Sam McCloy, [email protected] or Jonathan Shingler, [email protected]
style, mood and health, and to provide optimum safety throughout the journey. Location-based services may also be included to monitor not only the driver, but also the environment (for example automatic switching to electric from gas when moving from highway to city areas).
Telematics is also becoming a powerful tool for all sorts of new business and public sector models. It has already been adopted in the insurance sector where some companies offer ‘black-box’ solutions to track drivers over time. This is seen as a ‘foolproof ’ method of keeping premiums down. Insurance companies can also use the data in aggregate to segment drivers more effectively, and to better tier their rates according to driver age, gender and situation. Other applications for telematics include fleet management and traffic optimization (including
TECHTALK - DRIVING DISRUPTION IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
INSURANCE COMPANIES CAN ALSO USE THE
DATA IN AGGREGATE TO SEGMENT DRIVERS MORE
EFFECTIVELY, AND TO BETTER TIER THEIR RATES
ACCORDING TO DRIVER AGE, GENDER AND SITUATION
