- How important is it to have your car connected to the internet? Answers from car drivers vary from being completely unaware of the idea of a connected car, to being very dependent on having internet in the car for any journey.
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Drivers appetite for internet connection is closely linked to how easy internet can be brought to the touchscreen and how easy services can be accessed. What a recent research report - Connected Cars: Revenue Opportunities by Parks Associates, a market research and consulting company showed is that, the more accustomed drivers are to using smartphones and the multitude of applications that come with it, the more likely they are to want the same experience while driving.
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Park's Senior Analyst, Jennifer Kent, said that at present, over 80% of U.S. broadband households with a mobile phone service have a smartphone. The high percentage of smartphone ownership drives the demand for various applications for in-vehicle use. To illustrate, Park said that when drivers are asked about their interest in having in-vehicle navigation assistance, only 37% of current vehicle owners in U.S. broadband households say to be interested while among smartphone owners, the percentage rose to 48%.
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The report also showed that over 75% of US vehicle owners with at least one connected car feature indicate these services will influence their next vehicle purchase while over 50% rate connected services as "very important" in guiding their new vehicle purchase. According to the report, the ability to make phone calls via the car's built-in BlueTooth connectivity is the most common feature while the most desired feature is the ability to view maps and receive directions.
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This will also mean that Apple, with its existing CarPlay solution in a growing number of car models and Google, with its plan to bring to market the Android Auto by the end of this year may have an edge compared to other connected car solutions, given that smartphone users are already trained to navigate and use their applications, and will find that having a similar interface on their car's touch screen greatly facilitates access to a range of services such as maps, music and messaging while they are on the road.
"Apple and Google are vying to be the consumer touch point for connected applications and services, and that competition has naturally extended to the automotive space. Both of their solutions bring their mobile operating systems to the car through a 'mirroring' approach that lets the user control certain smartphone functions and apps through the car's display, physical buttons, or voice control."
- Park's Senior Analyst, Jennifer Kent,
Want to know more about the Connected Car and where the market is heading to? Go to our selection of latest Connected Car Posts. Or take a look at our latest 'Connected Car' Infograhics.