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What are the outer limits of the infotainment system?

By Joshua Condon Jan 19, 2010 3:51PM
Craig Daitch over at Automotive News has a very good article today, addressing something I've been pondering since the Los Angeles Auto Show -- namely, how far can car companies take their ever-expanding infotainment systems?

Daitch's argument is that the center console could lead Ford -- through its Sync technology -- and others (like GM and its OnStar system) towards being companies that have media applications on their mind as much as miles per gallon and horsepower. To wit: Daitch imagines a scenario where a GM customer uses OnStar to look for a gas station:
Driver: Hi, I'm looking for the closest gas station.

OnStar: You are 0.5 miles away from a Shell but 0.6 miles from a BP, where you can use a discount code to save 15 percent.
It doesn't stop there, either. Sync and other infotainment systems already have location-based services, iPhone (and other mobile) application compatibility and, in some cases, wireless access. What's to stop the parent companies from subsidizing future in-car tech with advertising?

Of course, the author does a good job of pointing out what a fine line those companies walk; while Sync-enabled cars sell twice as fast as non-Sync-enabled ones, car companies risk severely alienating customers who don't want their cars -- perhaps the last bastion of ad-free (save radio, of course) personal space -- inundated by Madison Avenue.

In any case, Daitch has me thinking about this again. I've been meaning to get some of the other Exhaust Notes writers' take on the idea, so keep an eye out for more discussion next week -- and, as always, let us know what you think in the comments section.

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