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Surviving the Next Ten Years – A Technology Story WORDS BY KEITH LEHMANN
Experts say the auto industry will evolve more in the next decade than it has in the last fifty years due to the rise in connectivity and mobile technology. The dynamic happenings in the technology world are rapidly changing how automakers design, build and market their vehicles. The rise of the connected car is changing everything. Let’s first define what we mean by the “connected car.” The connected car is a vehicle able to enhance its own operation as well as deliver augmented convenience, comfort, safety and productivity to the driver and passengers through the use of on-board connectivity to communicate with external networks. Newly designed connectivity platforms will bring in functionality that exists on server networks outside the vehicle, and the implications on the driving experience are truly endless. For the sake of your survival in the next ten years, look at where connected technologies are radically changing the landscape of vehicles, how they’re driven and what this means to you, the aftermarket mobile electronics retailer.
Five Years From Now By 2020 the connected car will be an everyday reality, enabling a world of new possibilities for drivers. In five years’ time, you will be able to drop your car off at the garage for a service and monitor its progress from the office, hand over low-speed control to the car in a traffic jam, or benefit from next generation connected infotainment services. The next five years will see the roll out of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication networks. These networks transform the car from a mechanical device into an intelligent transport system capable of communicating with other vehicles and infrastructure. The driving experience will be augmented by this communication through the delivery of cloud-based services and in-car functionality that would not be otherwise possible. Also by 2020, we will see more driver assist and collision avoidance technologies mandated by federal and state governments. For the aftermarket mobile electronics retailer, derivative business
48 Mobile Electronics 2015 Survival Guide
opportunities are possible once add-on solutions are required for the hundreds of millions of non-connected vehicles to comply with new safety rules. State certifications for installers and retail licenses for selling and installing these connected devices are highly probable, thus mobile electronics retailers should stay informed on what is happening and when to get involved with this new business venture.
Ten Years From Now Here is where things get very interesting. The rise in urban living will mean car ownership will become less appealing to drivers. Car sharing fleets like ZipCar will be much more common by 2025, and automakers will be partnering with these fleets in the development of interiors that are better suited to multiple owners. Digital driving licenses will be held on smart phones, and users will be able to book a car and receive the booking details on their smart phone, then use near-field-communication (NFC) to access it. NFC will also be used to personalize