A new study from Juniper Research estimates that the adoption of connected in-vehicle infotainment systems will produce revenues exceeding $600m by 2020.
This amounts to a 10-fold increase on this year’s expected revenue. The new research – Consumer Connected Cars: Telematics, Insurance and In-Vehicle Applications 2015-2020, predicts that consumer adoption of connected car infotainment systems will grow rapidly when Apple CarPlay and Android Auto start gaining traction.
Once these two tech powerhouses establish their software and make it compatible with a wide range of cars’ infotainment systems, Juniper expects a wave of new applications to flood the market. Applications specifically designed for the in-vehicle infotainment systems. These include, advanced traffic solutions, route optimisation and even in-vehicle gaming.
According to their research – on-board systems with integrated wireless connectivity – will eventually push ahead of systems requiring the presence of a smartphone. OEM’s will seize the opportunity for greater independence and better integration with these in-vehicle infotainment systems. Essentially directly integrating software such as Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and BlackBerry’s QNX.
The research also suggests that OTT (Over the Top) players such as Apple, Amazon and Google – would play an ever increasing role in the development of these connected infotainment systems. This would go hand in hand with the autonomous driving systems that these brands are already heavily involved in.
Amazon’s recent announcement about their voice controlled smart home system, Echo and how it will be able to interact with Ford’s SYNC in-vehicle infotainment system is just a taste of what’s to come.
Juniper argued that the swathe of new OTT services will bring with them a high level of competition, as each system rises to the challenge of higher and higher consumer expectations. This environment will be similar to the current smart phone app markets, which are incredibly competitive. Users will also expect similar levels of speed, functionality and features.