With the advent of the Ford Sync, other manufacturers’ and automakers’ endeavor to finally hit the magic formula to pave the way for a complete in-car information and entertainment has become reality.
Another upcoming venture will be initiated by the Microsoft and Siemens partnership. The partnership will develop information, navigational, communications, and entertainment systems for cars and trucks.
Microsoft and Siemens VDO are partnering to create “a range of innovative infotainment solutions that transform the driving experience,” said Martin Thall, the general manager of the automotive business unit at Microsoft.
The companies will collaborate on a host of solutions, including technology that will enable portable entertainment devices - such as iPods and portable video players - to be connected to in-car video and audio systems, wrote Keith Regan of the E-Commerce Times.
“We will make both current and future multimedia and infotainment solutions, some of which are still under development, available to current generation vehicles,” said Siemens board member Helmut Matschi. “We will be able to incorporate the rapidly changing trends in consumer electronics into the world of automotive electronics in an ideal way.”
According to Information Week, Microsoft and Siemens VDO Automotive will work jointly to develop in-vehicle information, communications, navigational, and entertainment systems. The companies intend to develop the applications on a base of Microsoft’s Windows Automotive and Microsoft Auto software platforms, with the first products expected to roll out in 2009, the report added. Among other things, the companies plan to build interfaces that will allow consumers to connect their portable entertainment devices to automobile video and audio systems.
Toyota, Honda, and Volvo are now offering in-car systems using Microsoft software. The software giant recently teamed with Ford to come up with the Sync - a voice-activated communications and entertainment auto system that will be launched this fall. The system will allow drivers to access their mobile phones through voice commands and plug MP3 players into their car stereo.
“Automakers are getting on the infotainment bandwagon big time,” said Frost and Sullivan analyst Sivam Sabesan. “Microsoft’s work with Ford and Siemens VDO are part of a trend that is likely to become more prevalent.”
Microsoft is far from alone in being frustrated by the pace of adoption of telematics, but rivals such as Apple have started offering shoppers such systems including models with iPod jacks.
With Microsoft chasing Apple with its Zune portable players, the various parts of Microsoft’s strategy could start to come together, ABI Research analyst Dan Benjamin said.
“The Zune could become not only a way to carry music and movies to be played in a car but also could morph into a satellite radio receiver over time,” Benjamin added. “By itself, the automotive segment could be a significant revenue source for Microsoft, with some 50 million cars sold worldwide each year, but the opportunities to advance the larger entertainment strategy may be even more compelling.”
Systems developed through the partnership will be marketed by Siemens VDO, which has the significant slice of the world’s major automakers among its customers.
