On the latest episode of IoT Unplugged, Ian Televik, Marketing Director at the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC) gave IoT Insider a glimpse into the burgeoning car connectivity market, discussing their Digital Key certification programme, standardising the storage and sharing of digital keys on mobile devices.
The CCC, which was first founded in 2011 by companies across the automotive and consumer electronics industries, is today made up of 300 member companies worldwide, including vehicle manufacturers and technology companies.
The landscape for car connectivity currently is an “exciting time,” Televik said, noting that increased momentum and adoption of connected vehicles across the globe demonstrates accelerated growth.
Making car connectivity more concrete, the Digital Key represents an areas its members have been working on steadily, focusing more specifically on vehicle access; connecting vehicles to mobile dveices so that the end user can enter their car without needing a phyiscal key.
The work has concentrated on making this solution not only interoperable – so that the end user isn’t prohibited depending on what smartphone or car they own – but also secure.
“One approach is to go and develop your own proprietary solution,” said Televik. “And if you’re a car company, developing your proprietary … solution, there is a significant amount of resource investment, time investment … having to work with the different players in the ecosystem.
“Our members recognise that there’s an opportunity to build this global technology standard.”
Alongside developing the Digital Key, the organisation is also developing its certification programme, to allow its members to get their implementation certified and ensure they are meeting security and interoperability standards. As an example of this, in July 2024 NXP Semiconductors announced its NFC-enabled digital wallet, SN220, had been certified by the programme.
Taking a short-term focus, the goals for CCC are continuing its certification programme and witnessing more cars on the roads that are certified; long-term, it’s about ensuring its members bring innovative ideas to the organisation and it continues to meet the needs of consumers.
If you want to learn more about the CCC’s Digital Key certification programme and car connectivity, you can listen to Televik’s insights on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and at the link below.
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