BMW Wins Best Telematics Component Solution, Global Car Manufacturer Innovation Awards at 2008 International Telematics Awards

Woodcliff Lake, NJ, June 16, 2008 -- In recognition of its innovative developments in automotive technology, German automaker BMW received the Best Telematics Component Solution and Global Car Manufacturer Innovation awards during a dinner reception at Telematics Update’s 2008 International Telematics Awards, which took place in Detroit, MI last month.

The awards dinner opened the 8th annual Telematics Detroit 2008 Conference & Exhibition—the world’s largest telematics conference. BMW—in conjunction with Connexis and Wireless Car—won the Best Telematics Component Solutions Award for their Next Generation Telematics Protocol (NGTP), which will make it easier for OEM’s to provide services and have greater control over service offerings, while allowing customers to access new services in their vehicle quickly and conveniently without the need for factory or dealer modifications. This open, technology-neutral interface between the Telematics Control Unit (TCU) in the car and the Telematics Service Provider (TSP) means that new services can be continuously provided for both older cars and new models throughout the vehicle lifecycle. Thanks to NGTP, customer requirements and requests can be met with considerably faster response times.

BMW Group was awarded the Global Car Manufacturer Innovation Award for its innovative strength and the leading edge introduction of advanced safety and entertainment features offered under the overall concept of ConnectedDrive, which is marketed as BMW Assist and TeleService in the United States. This marks the second year in a row that BMW Group has received the award. BMW was also nominated for awards in the Best Embedded Telematics Service and Best Embedded Telematics Navigation Product categories.

“BMW would like to thank Telematics Update for these prestigious awards,” said Tom Purves, President and CEO of BMWNA. “All of our vehicles are engineered to not only provide the ultimate in driving performance, but also the best in driver and passenger interaction with the vehicle. These awards celebrate the technology that helps make this possible, serve as tribute to the hard work of our engineers and are affirmation that we are on the right track.”

As a pioneer in the field of vehicle electronics, BMW Group began linking information, communication and assistance systems inside and beyond the car very early. In 1996, for example, BMW was the first manufacturer to introduce a GPS navigation system with full US road coverage, making map data from beyond the vehicle available to the driver. In 2002, the pioneering iDrive user interface was introduced.

“It is our goal to identify driver needs early on and to find innovative solutions. That is what drives our research and motivates our developers, engineers, technicians and designers, who never stop thinking ahead,” said Dr. Eckhard Steinmeier, BMW ConnectedDrive project manager. “From that point of view,” he went on, “these two leading global awards are a wonderful acknowledgment of our work.”

Every year the Telematics Awards, organized by the industry's only global print publication—Telematics Update—recognizes and celebrates the key companies that are driving the industry forward and pushing the boundaries in automotive and GPS technology.
Telematics Update, which produces the only telematics industry focused magazine, is the leading provider of business to business telematics intelligence, specializing in conferences, large scale events and seminars. It produces the largest telematics event in North America and Europe, and attracts the most influential speakers providing a rich environment for establishing strategic relationships and networking. In addition, Telematics Update also provides essential and unique business intelligence in the form of a business directory, which lists over 400 companies involved in the telematics industry, as well as transcripts and slide presentations from its conferences—premium content that is not available anywhere else.

BMW Group In America
BMW of North America, LLC has been present in the United States since 1975. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC began distributing vehicles in 2003. The BMW Group in the United States has grown to include marketing, sales, and financial service organizations for the BMW brand of motor vehicles, including motorcycles, the MINI brand, and the Rolls-Royce brand of Motor Cars; DesignworksUSA, an industrial design firm in California; a technology office in Silicon Valley and various other operations throughout the country. BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC in South Carolina is part of BMW Group’s global manufacturing network and is the exclusive manufacturing plant for all Z4 models, X5 Sports Activity Vehicles and the X6 Sports Activity Coupe. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 338 BMW passenger car centers, 335 BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 142 BMW motorcycle retailers, 82 MINI passenger car dealers, and 30 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers. BMW (US) Holding Corp., the BMW Group’s sales headquarters for North, Central and South America, is located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.

Source: BMW Group

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