Vision - May/June 2008 - (Page 35)

by steve koenig ] • [ industry research Market insider Consumers plan to spend $23 billion on portable CE solutions for use in the car during the next year. to spend money on permanently installed CE products during the next year, representing a 50 percent increase in the number of buyers compared to the past year. Anticipated per person spending on these solutions is $339, yielding a total potential market of $17 billion over the next year. And installation costs, which consumers may not have factored into their spending plans, could raise the revenue opportunity even higher. CE on Board onsumer demand for invehicle technology has accelerated steadily over the past decade, driven by the need to be connected, productive, secure and entertained on the road. Need proof? Roll down the window and peek inside almost any U.S. auto today and you’ll find much more than a car stereo and four speakers. Chances are you’ll discover an array of technologies both installed and portable. Fact is, the vehicle has become a major intersection between consumers and CE products, but mapping business opportunities here can be challenging for manufacturers and retailers alike. CEA’s Automotive Electronics—What Consumers Want and What they Desire study provides insight on in-vehicle technology by looking at consumer behaviors, attitudes and preferences surrounding this market. To start, the study found American drivers spend an average of 17 hours per week behind the wheel. Just one reason we find so many embedded entertainment technologies such as connections for digital music players, video and gaming systems in addition to the car stereo. Safety and security technologies such as navigation or parking assist sensors are manifest in cars to a lesser extent, with the exception of car alarms. But intriguing research cites universal appeal for in-car CE across age and gender segments. www.ce.org C The study shows emerging technologies Opportunity for the Aftermarket such as back-up cameras are more likely What’s more, consumers plan to spend to be bought and installed in the aftermar- $23 billion on portable CE solutions for ket. Some 81 percent of cars equipped with use in the car during the next year with this device had it installed after the vehicle 27 percent of the driving age population was purchased. More mature CE products planning to spend an average of $352. The including head units and vehicle question then is obvious: Will the tracking systems are installed at the business opportunities trend away factory principally but some emergfrom installed solutions in favor of ing technologies, including telematportable CE devices? ics systems, also are mostly factory Where the aftermarket is coninstalled. Generally speaking, once cerned, the trend favors the porcar makers identify demand for table business. Witness separate Steve Koenig CEA research surveying aftermartechnology in the aftermarket, many ket installers which confirms what seek to integrate the solution in their vehicles to boost appeal (and margins), but many in the industry already know: installthis process can take several years. Thus, the ing aftermarket products in new vehicles aftermarket has a significant time advantage is becoming more challenging and diffifor marketing cutting-edge technologies. cult. But it may be premature to park the aftermarket for installed in-vehicle technologies. Portable vs. Installed CEA’s Automotive Electronics—What Of equal interest in the study are the portable Consumers Want and What they Desire electronics products consumers bring with them into the vehicle environment. Here we study demonstrates a robust segment of find cell phones (84 percent), laptop PCs (45 consumers (generally men and young drivpercent), portable DVD players (25 percent), ers under 24) who prefer the flexibility of portable gaming devices (20 percent), Blu- installing in-car CE solutions themselves etooth headsets (12 percent) and portable or by a professional aftermarket installer navigation devices (9 percent). Factoring (most likely MECP certified). these CE products into the in-car technology Expect consumers to increasingly demand open platforms which can accomarena greatly expands the opportunity for the industry. But it all boils down to consumers’ modate the installation or integration of the preference for installed versus portable CE next wave of cutting-edge CE technologies. solutions when it comes to their cars. Therefore, car makers who design and build The good news for the aftermarket is 21 aftermarket-friendly vehicles potentially percent of the driving age population plans can realize a competitive advantage. • May/June 2008 Jim Craigmyle/Corbis 35 http://www.ce.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Vision - May/June 2008

Vision - May/June 2008 Contents Shapiro's Spectrum In This Issue The Economist C4 Trends Visionary Making the Smartphone Truly Intelligent Shipping Strategies for CE Companies IP in BRIC Countries CEA Newsline Tech Speak Eye on Business Tech Policy Market Insider Just the Stats

Vision - May/June 2008

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