3.5 million European cars have telematics device

09 October 2009, 7:24am

Gothenburg, Sweden – October 9, 2009: According to a new research report from the analyst firm Berg Insight, 3.5 million passenger cars in Europe will have an on-board telematics device at the end of 2009. The installed base has continued to grow during the year but the year-on-year growth rate is projected to decrease from 35.9 percent in 2008 to 18.4 percent in 2009 due to the weaker demand on the automotive market. Aftermarket telematics systems for stolen vehicle tracking and insurance applications still dominate the market, while the market share for OEM systems remains small.

Although the telematics market is clearly affected by the difficult situation in the global automotive industry, Berg Insight is cautiously optimistic regarding the development in the coming years. Across the world, extended availability of services and new regulations drive the demand for high volume, low cost telematics solutions. In Europe the eCall project has made progress and the vision of cars that automatically dial 112 after a crash is getting closer to becoming a reality. “Some vital technical standards are now in place and the EC has presented a new more realistic deadline for full-scale implementation by 2014”, said Tobias Ryberg, senior analyst, Berg Insight. The largest remaining obstacle is now resistance from France and the UK, which are the only major EU member states that have not expressed their support for the initiative. Once implemented the pan-European safety system is anticipated to generate shipments of about 15 million OEM telematics units annually.

Berg Insight

Geo: International