Connected cars with Internet connections growing in numbers & profits

Parks-Associates--Ownership-of-Connected-Car-FeaturesParks Associates research reports that there are increasingly connected cars in the United States. The company reported the following figures:

  • 10% of vehicle owners in U.S. broadband households have access to built-in apps or can remotely control their vehicle using a mobile phone.
  • 52% of cars sold in the U.S. in 2014 had some form of connectivity.
  • 12% can connect to a live agent for emergency or roadside assistance.
  • About a third of vehicles can view vehicle health reports, use Bluetooth and make or received hands-fee calls.
  • 16% of light vehicles in the U.S., or about 41 million vehicles, will have an active Internet connection by year-end 2015
  • 17% have mapping and navigation capabilities.
  • 61% of car owners prefer to bundle vehicle data consumption with smartphone data consumption.
  • 44% of car owners in U.S. broadband households have some kind of advanced connected car feature. That figure increases dramatically among owners of vehicles less than three years old, indicating that penetration will continue to increase in the near term. Demand for connected car features among those without access to such features in their current vehicle is strongest among young drivers and smartphone owners.
  • More than 50% of U.S. broadband households express privacy and safety concerns regarding connected cars.

“The connected car industry must be up-front about costs, safety, and security efforts. Market players have to be proactive so that connected car features do not develop a bad reputation among parents, politicians, and consumers,” said Jenifer Kent, Director, Research Quality & Product Development, Parks Associates.

In previous reports Parks and Associates noted there is a potential of in-vehicle connectivity to increase value and provide benefits for both consumers and automakers. Connectivity expands customer relationship, generates revenue, generates new business, cuts costs for repairs, creates competition to differentiate models and data allows for monetizing driver data.

Parks Associates offers a white paper The Connected Car: A Value Chain in Flux for free and other new paid reports.