Who’s winning?

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Posted Nov 13, 2009
by John Day
1 Comment
Tags: 4G, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota Prius, Long Term Evolution, Fiat, Alcatel-Lucent, Daimler, Volkswagen, LTE, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Infotainment, Telematics Munich, Microsoft Auto, Ford, QNX Software, ng Connect Program, QNX CAR, Genivi Alliance

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Remember the Presidential debates a year or so ago? Or the race itself, for that matter. Think how much of the reporting focused on who won the last debate, or who was ahead in the race at the moment. Same with college football. We want to know who’s leading whom – even if we don’t have reliable metrics for determining the winner.

This desire to keep score came to mind when I thought about the recent LTE Connected Car announcement from Alcatel-Lucent, QNX Software, and other members of the ng Connect Program, which Alcatel-Lucent organized. They configured a Toyota Prius to do all kinds of neat connected infotainment things based on 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) technology, using the QNX CAR application development platform.

Presumably Alcatel-Lucent/ng Connect could have selected another platform instead of QNX CAR – Microsoft Auto, for example, or Genivi, if it were a bit further along, but it went with QNX. Genivi was the focus of a panel discussion at Telematics Munich, the title of which was “Open Platform Technology Is Gaining Moementum. Choose Your Side Now.”

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Considering application development a game might be even more fun if the various sides were firmly entrenched, but in real life organizations compete and collaborate simultaneously. Microsoft, for example, is a partner in QNX CAR as well as a platform developer itself. General Motors is both a partner in QNX CAR and a member of the Genivi Alliance. Daimler, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen line up with QNX at the moment, while Fiat and Ford are with Microsoft Auto. BMW and PSA Peugeot Citroën are OEM members of the Genivi Alliance. Can we add Toyota to QNX’s list?

Switching sides is easy until serious development is underway. Picking winners at this point makes no sense, but that doesn’t make conjecture any less fun. Who do you like?

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About John Day

John DayJohn Day recently launched John Day’s Automotive Electronics News (johndayautomotivelectronics.com) to provide news and feature coverage of the automotive electronics industry. Earlier he wrote for Auto Electronics magazine, Auto E-lectronics, EE Times, and other business and engineering publications. Visit John Day

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1 Comment on this Post

Commented on 5:55 PM, Nov 16, 2009
By Andrew

I think one thing that Microsoft did right with Windows Automotive was that they took the conversation above the OS. At the end of the day the OS is an enabler to applications, resources, etc. and as more cars become connected to the "cloud" the enabler moves beyond the car itself. The problem with GenIVI in my mind is that it is attempting to address automotive at the OS level after everyone else in the industry has moved past that conversation. QNX has middleware that runs on Windows Automotive and Linux, but when an OEM or Tier 1 needs a full, integrated, automotive grade solution QNX can provide it. The thing to look at now is the business model. Who makes money in cars that are connected. Google? Microsoft? the carrier? the car OEM? The Tier 1? Who gets or keeps control (of the revenue, brand, customer, data, etc.? I think those are the conversations that need to be had to see who will "win" in automotive.

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