BMW will charge a monthly subscription fee for functions on your own car
The subscription model is also invading the automotive industry
It seems that after the entertainment space, where subscription services like Netflix and Disney+ in terms of TV series and PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass in terms of gaming have dominated, the subscription model is preparing to invade the car space as well.
In particular, according to a new report by The Verge , owners of various BMW vehicles in some countries will need to pay a monthly subscription to use all the functions of the car they have purchased. For example, the use of heated seats, the accessories for which are already in the vehicle, will become possible only after paying $18 per month. Meanwhile, BMW’s ConnectedDrive store in the UK, Germany, South Korea, New Zealand and South Africa will come with many more… microtransactions .
In detail, there will be other locked functions, such as for example the heating of the steering wheel or the possibility of automatic switching from high to low beam for the lights, when a car in the opposite stream is recognized. These two features will each ask for around $12 per month. In fact, in addition to monthly subscriptions, there will also be annual packages, such as access to an online music library for $213 a year or alerts from security cameras for $30 a year.
It is worth noting that BMW drivers in these countries will not need to take their cars to a workshop to install the features. The equipment is already in the car they’ve bought, they just have to pay an extra amount on a regular basis to use it. The whole process is done with an ‘over-the-air’ software upgrade through BMW’s ConnectedDrive platform.
