China Mobile targets connected car market with Gemalto deal

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China Mobile is entering the connected car market via a deal with Gemalto, who will supply the telco with its LinqUS On-Demand Connectivity (ODC) Subscription Management solution and GSMA-compliant embedded SIMs (eSIMs).

China Mobile will use the solution to enable secure connectivity for connected cars – which means a new subscription profile can be securely provisioned via China Mobile’s network in cars equipped with embedded SIMs, enabling end users to use “in-car” connected services throughout the lifecycle of the car, such as infotainment, navigation support, safety and vehicle diagnostics.

The connected car market is projected to be worth $130 billion by 2021. In the meantime, buyers are increasingly looking at value-added services as an important criterion when choosing a new car, and fuss-free and high-quality connectivity will be an area of interest in years to come.

To illustrate the point, data from a 2015 McKinsey survey suggests that 60% of Chinese car owners would switch to another brand if they feel a competitor could offer better connectivity. China sold 24.6 million cars in 2015, and became the largest car market in the world. In such a competitive climate, automotive makers will have to innovate in all aspects in order to distinguish themselves from the rest.

The Internet of Things will be one of the most important growth drivers as China Mobile transforms from being a mobile network operator to becoming a digital service provider, said Suzanne Tong-Li, president of Greater China & Korea at Gemalto.

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