As part of a growing trend in the automotive sector, General Motors has collaborated with IBM to equip its cars with ecommerce technology.
The new system, called Marketplace, lets drivers order food and pay for fuel by tapping icons on the dashboard screen. It will compete with smartphones, which offer many more applications than GM currently has in place, but pose more of a safety hazard. Marketplace is designed to have limited interactions to minimize driver distraction. Vijay Iyer of GM’s Global Connected Customer Experience and Urban Mobility team summarized feedback from customer: “I want to be productive in the car, but I know I can’t do it on my phone.” He says that customers want an interface that lets them do something in an intuitive manner and keeps them safe.
In-dash ecommerce is a growing trend in the automotive industry. Other carmakers, including Ford, are working with Amazon to offer automotive ecommerce through Amazon’s Alexa virtual assistant.
At this early stage, GM’s system is still evolving. It launched with Shell and Exxon Mobil icons, which include the ability to receive fuel offers from gas stations. Users can reserve a table at TGI Fridays, or order and pay ahead for takeout from Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts and Applebee‘s, though available services vary at the moment. The carmaker plans to continue adding more options and retail partners, beginning in the first quarter of 2018. It will also expand the connected car experience with the integration of music, news and other information services.
As Reuters reports, GM also hopes to use its in-car Marketplace connections to expand purchases of products and services, such as additional access to in-car wifi, through its replacement parts business and dealer network. Customers can “expect to see more service promotions coming through the platform,” said Santiago Chamorro, GM Vice President for Global Connected Customer Experience.
GM receives a portion of revenue from vendors featured on Marketplace, but the service and data usage are free for customers. “This platform is financed by the merchants,” who pay GM for placing their apps on its screens, Chamorro said. It is too soon to say how much revenue GM could realize from the Marketplace system, he added.
Marketplace is now available in about 1.9 million 2017 and later GM vehicles, including Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands, with many systems having been uploaded automatically to cars with the necessary equipment. An additional 4 million or so vehicles in the US will have the capability by the end of 2018.
