Cellular giant Verizon is joining forces with five major vehicle manufacturers in an attempt to foster even speedier innovation in the automotive and telematics 4G LTE ecosystem. The collective effort, known as the "4G Venture Forum for Connected Cars," links Verizon with BMW, Honda, Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Motors and Toyota Motor Sales as well as Professor Sanjay Sarma of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. According to Verizon, the key mission of the group will be to collectively explore ways to deliver enhanced connectivity to all types of vehicles by leveraging open standards in ways that will accelerate development of the 4G LTE system across automotive OEMs, suppliers, device manufacturers, application developers and content publishers.
Verizon has been a long-time proponent of exploiting the untapped benefits of wireless technology through its Innovation Program and subsequent 4G Venture Forum that was established in 2009. This latest offshoot, the 4G Venture Forum for Connected Cars, is intended to complement and extend that effort by focusing exclusively on the specific needs and potential of the automotive arena.
"There are many challenges to designing next generation telematics and infotainment solutions, including supporting safe and responsible driving, advancing vehicle-to-vehicle solutions and improving sustainability, among others," said Tami Erwin, chief marketing officer for Verizon Wireless. "As an innovator in the technology industry, Verizon is a natural impetus for this collaboration, which we all expect will include other companies and spur results that will benefit not only the industry, but millions of consumers around the world."
