General Motors Plans 50 New Fee-Based Digital Features, Services by 2026

GM’s many new features will also include one to enable a vehicle to predict when it will need maintenance.

By Reuters | Updated: 25 February 2022 13:05 IST

General Motors Plans 50 New Fee-Based Digital Features, Services by 2026

GM is considering monthly, annual, and lifetime subscription options for digital features

Highlights

GM's OnStar unit generates about $32 a month per customer
The new digital products will be supported by GM's Ultifi software
Company is considering flexible pricing options for new digital features

General Motors aims to turbocharge its non-vehicle revenue by introducing dozens of new fee-based digital features by 2026, including one enabling a car to predict when it will need maintenance, a top executive said on Thursday.

"We have 50-some value-added products and services that we'll be rolling out over the next 36 to 48 months," Steve Carlisle, president of GM North America, said at an investor conference.

Carlysle said GM's OnStar unit, which now offers insurance in addition to concierge services to drivers, generates about $32 (roughly Rs. 2,400) a month per customer, and its enhanced Super Cruise driver assist feature will further bolster that.

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The new digital products, including in-vehicle subscriptions, will be supported by GM's Ultifi software and connectivity platform. Ultifi also will enable over-the-air software updates, and help drivers and passengers with tasks such as online shopping.

Carlysle said some of the digital features are designed to take advantage of larger displays that GM is installing on the GMC Hummer EV, Chevrolet Silverado EV, Cadillac Lyriq, and other future electric vehicles. "The bigger screens on our EVs will enable us to bring more of the data-oriented software products to the customers," he said.

He also said GM is considering flexible pricing options for a number of those digital features, including monthly, annual, and lifetime subscriptions.

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The introduction of more data-driven services and products is part of CEO Mary Barra's plan, announced last October, to double GM's annual revenue to around $280 (roughly Rs. 21,08,302 crore) billion by 2030.

© Thomson Reuters 2022

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