- Verizon is using 5G to further penetrate the U.S. connected car market, a space long dominated by AT&T
- BMW vehicles will be the first to tap Verizon’s Standalone 5G network
- KDDI America is part of the BMW deal, providing the platform that lets BMW manage connectivity and data flows over Verizon’s network
Say what you will about 5G, but it’s giving Verizon a way to more aggressively reach the connected car market – one that in the U.S. has been dominated by AT&T for decades.
Verizon landed Volkswagen Group as the first big auto manufacturer and is supplying connectivity for its Audi brand, as well as a handful of others. This week, Verizon added another big name to its roster: BMW. Going forward, Verizon will be providing 5G and LTE connectivity for all new BMW, Mini and other BMW Group vehicles sold in the United States.
“We think 5G has really been an accelerant towards a lot of the things that we've talked about in connected cars for a lot of years,” Verizon SVP of Global Solutions Daniel Lawson told Fierce. “We really have redoubled our focus in the auto space in the 5G era.”
Verizon has a long-standing relationship with KDDI, the second largest operator in Japan. KDDI America is also part of the BMW deal; it’s providing the Global Communications Platform that enables a programmable connected experience for BMW Group, giving the automaker control over the connectivity and data packets that flow through Verizon’s network.
Ready for slicing
The BMW cars will be the first ones to use Verizon’s 5G Standalone (SA) network, which enables network slicing. Network slicing isn’t part of the original design for BMW, but one of the benefits is it allows for “future proofing,” in the sense that it doesn’t require a new chip.
“We could turn it on if we find a use case that is interesting and drives value both for BMW and their end user customers,” Lawson said. “We’ve set them up for everything … to be able to take advantage of slicing when it’s needed.”
Autonomous driving is another big driver (pun intended) for connected cars. “It doesn’t use 5G to drive the car, but 5G connectivity is a critical component of the autonomous driving ecosystem,” he said.
Verizon provides 5G telematics and IoT management solutions that enable, for example, Kodiak AI to provide 24/7 driverless capabilities for 18-wheelers.
“They are very much on the cutting edge of autonomous driving within the logistics space, so we’ve been doing a lot of testing and production work with them,” he said.
Verizon private 5G for auto OEMs
More broadly, Verizon is increasingly providing private networks for auto manufacturers and others. Rather than running wires to connect robotics in the assembly process, they’re using private wireless networks. That, too, is a growing segment.
“What we’ve deployed I think has positioned us really well to continue to scale,” he said. “We see more and more use cases,” not only in manufacturing but also in healthcare, logistics, energy and sports venues, to name a few.
Verizon is the official telecommunications sponsor for the FIFA World Cup in the U.S., and it’s deployed private networks in stadiums across the country. “That's an area that we're very excited about as well,” he said.
More Fierce Network connected car coverage:
Verizon gets on the road to V2X
Verizon, Nissan connect for car safety using MEC
AT&T shifts gears with IoT, connected cars
AT&T drives forward with 2 connected car partnerships
AT&T boasts 1M unlimited data customers using connected car hotspots