Partnership
Over the past several months, several partnerships have been announced by automakers, payment companies and others meant to speed up the process of getting the technology deployed in cars. A number of models being developed will use touch-screen technology in the cars; others will allow use from a cellphone.
Honda is one of those interested parties.
“Payments have evolved from physical plastic cards to a digital, mobile wallet, and Honda sees this as an opportunity to bring this technology into the car to pay for services from the comfort of one’s car,” said John Moon, developer relations lead at Honda Developer Studio. The studio is an initiative meant to work directly with Honda engineers to create apps that are road-ready more quickly.
In January, Honda and Visa announced that they were collaborating with Gilbarco Veeder-Root and IPS Group in developing in-car technology that could pay for everyday services.
“For us, we’re starting to transform ourselves into a mobility services company. ... Payments become really fundamental to that,” he said.
General Motors and IBM have struck a similar partnership with OnStar and Watson, IBM’s supercomputer that will be able to learn the driver’s preferences.
Like with Honda and Visa, OnStar Go can let a fuel pump approve payment. Beyond that, drivers can get news and entertainment tailored to their personality and location.
Companies in retail, fuel, hospitality and media will be among those wanting to develop an individualized program that could, for example, remind a driver to pick up diapers and formula before going home.
At this point, it is not clear how much these services could add to the cost of a car, Harbage said.
“Much of it is still unpriced,” he said. “Some may be free to consumers and funded by fees on the services.”
One goal of the technology is to make transactions easier for consumers, said Rob Morgan, the American Bankers Association’s vice president of emerging technologies.
He compared it to the transponders added to cars and trucks that allow them to drive through toll roads and bridges without stopping. The price of the toll is then deducted from the driver’s account.
In coming years, Morgan can even see a day when driverless vehicles talk to one another and could even make payments for another car to allow one of the cars, for example, to move over into the fast lane on a highway.
“For transactions, the sky is the limit,” he said. A new distraction?
The notion of another potential distraction worries Kimberly Schwind, AAA senior public-relations manager in Ohio.
Insurers have reported a rise in the number and severity of crashes that they blame on distracted driving, including drivers texting while on the road.
“When we’re behind the wheel, we should be focused on driving,” she said. “The problem is huge with distracted driving. Cars have become our offices. They have become an extension of our daily life. We can’t even disconnect while we’re driving anymore.”
She said AAA studies have shown even hands-free systems in cars can distract drivers.
Developers of the payment technology say it reflects a move toward ride-sharing and autonomous cars. They also say the vehicle will have to be parked before using the technology.
“It will save us a little bit of time,” Honda’s Moon said. “It makes it easier to make payments for services and make those services convenient.”