Battle for control of connected car ecosystem has not been decided – Renault

It might be slightly unusual to have one of the worlds’ automotive giants presenting at a broadband conference, but despite the odd fit, there were some very interesting points made.

Speaking to Telecoms.com on the side-lines of Broadband World Forum at Amsterdam, Renault’s Chief Sales and Marketing Officers for the services unit Benoit Joly, gave a statement which will come as a tsunami of relief to the telco industry; the battle for control of the connected car ecosystem has not been decided yet.

This has been the worry of many industry analysts and commentators. When a new segment of the digital economy emerges, can the telcos move quick enough to capitalise on the newly created revenues?

A perfect example of this is in the living room. When the idea of the smart home emerged, the telcos got very excited. Here was an opportunity to move beyond the realms of connectivity service provider and into the promised land of digital services provider. However, progress was too slow, and now it looks like the OTTs own this space through their smart speakers.

In this instance, aside from a few rare examples around the world, the telcos have been relegated to commoditised connectivity providers. In the connected car segment, this is not the case, not yet anyway.

As Joly pointed out, there is a space for the telcos in the connected car segment, above and beyond the dreaded utility tag. Renault is of course working closely with the telcos in this fast evolving but still embryonic area, but it is also working alongside the OTTs. Business models are evolving, and services are still being created, this is an exciting area.

The interesting element for the consumer is going to be the seamless nature of the connected car as an element of the wider digital life. The telcos already have skin in the game, as the connectivity provider, however so do the OTTs; the fraternity which owns the customer experience will reap the profits.

From a purely commoditised revenue perspective, there is of course opportunity. Joly highlighted that the car could be seen as an additional element to monetise, though it is not exactly nailed down how. Should connectivity in the car be seen as an extension of existing consumer mobile tariffs or do the telcos wholesale mobile connectivity to the automotive OEMs?

This element of the equation will perhaps depend on who owns the connected car platform and the supporting ecosystem. Should the telcos win out over the OTTs, there will be a lot more influence to dictate the state of play, or perhaps the OEMs would want to wholesale connectivity? The automotive giants do not want their product to be commoditised, therefore this could be a way in which the OEMs add value to customers beyond the point-of-sale of a vehicle.

There are still a lot of moving parts in this fast-evolving segment of the digital economy, and many questions which need to be answered. The OTTs will of course want to own the ecosystem, and the newly created revenues which come with it, however the telcos will be relieved to hear there is still a chance they can move up the value chain in this segment at least.