3G sunset brings end of features, or upgrades

As of last week, potentially millions of vehicle owners lost a host of subscription-based safety features, including automatic collision notifications and emergency call assistance, as AT&T's 3G network went dark. Other wireless networks plan to terminate 3G connectivity by the end of the year.

The auto industry knew the 3G sunset was coming, but the approaches varied by vehicle brand. Most automakers offered full or partial solutions to affected customers. But others, including Nissan, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota, are letting their customers' connectivity expire without a backup plan.

The network shutdown spotlights the importance of keeping pace with technology as vehicles become more like smartphones and as automakers begin to count connected services as significant revenue streams.

Roger Lanctot, director of automotive connected mobility for research company Strategy Analytics, said automakers that failed to offer a solution to the 3G network loss could face serious backlash from consumers. Lanctot estimates that 3 million vehicles could be impacted by the 3G sunset.

Many automakers are placing big bets on their ability to gain revenue from in-vehicle software and subscription services. General Motors, for example, expects revenue from software and services to grow nearly 50 percent annually through 2030.

But if the industry fails to learn from the issues brought on by the sunset of 3G, automakers could quickly lose subscription customers to tech giants.

"If automakers don't solve this problem, they're just pushing customers into the arms of Google and Apple all over again," said Lanctot. "That's a problem because the built-in solution can add so much more information and personalized information, including communicating it to first responders, etc., that your smartphone is not going to be able to do."

Lanctot said the issues surrounding the shuttering of 3G have been further complicated by the mixed types of connected-vehicle services the automakers offer.

"For the most part, car-connected services do vary," Lanctot said. "They didn't all automatically come, for example, with automatic crash notification. They didn't all automatically come with remote start, for example."

There isn't an all-encompassing definition for "connected car," and the industry is also divided on whether certain features should be complimentary or subscription-based.

Volkswagen and Audi are working with a third party to avoid loss of connectivity from the shutdown.

The brands are using a device from technology company Mojio. The device plugs into the vehicle and ensures that services such as automaker crash notifications, emergency calls, on-demand roadside assistance and stolen vehicle locator remain active.

Mojio, founded in 2012, began co-developing its telematics device with Audi more than a year ago. The development process included piloting the device in Germany at one of Audi's test facilities.

"What they wanted to do is find a cost-effective way to keep crash detection, crash notification and [emergency] call running in all the 3G-affected vehicles," said Kenny Hawk, CEO of Mojio. The device provides vehicles with 4G LTE connectivity through T-Mobile for Business. Users also get access to the Motion for Audi Connect app.

Hawk said the unease around the 3G sunset shows that the industry will need to approach telematics differently moving forward.

"I think it screams there might be a better way," he said. "You don't want to be stuck with … something that's obsolete by the time you launch, so I think that the way this part of the car is designed will change."

Mobile technology is out of step with vehicle production, Hawk added, because the two industries advance at different paces.

"The big problem here is the speed and pace of mobile technology is so much faster than the pace of rolling out a new production vehicle, and so those two industries are at odds," said Hawk. "That's why we're in this thorny situation today."