DealerFire will offer three co-op-eligible advertising packages under the recently launched Volkswagen Service and Parts Advertising Program  

  DALLAS, May 30, 2019 — DealerSocket, Inc., a leading provider of automotive retail software, is announcing that Volkswagen has tapped DealerFire to drive a new digital advertising initiative aimed at helping Volkswagen dealers grab a bigger share of the $350 billion U.S. vehicle repair market.   

  DealerFire will offer three packages under the Volkswagen Service and Parts Advertising program that are eligible for a 50% retail co-op reimbursement. Each package will include content development and a mix of social, display, and search advertising, including the ability to promote service offers and specials directly on Facebook. Participating Volkswagen dealers will also utilize DealerFire to reach and target customers on the Google Display Network who are either searching for repairs, maintenance services, or are most likely in need of service work.  

  “Every month, consumers register over 200 million Google search queries for parts and service. However, franchise dealers capture just 30% of what consumers spend annually on vehicle repairs,” said Brian Wagner, general manager of DealerFire. “Volkswagen is putting its best digital-merchandising foot forward with a comprehensive program and has asked DealerFire’s award-winning software to drive it.” 

  The automaker’s comprehensive group-paid search marketing initiative will be administered through the Volkswagen Dealer Digital Program, which was created to connect the OEM’s roughly 650 U.S. dealers to best-in-class technology and digital marketing providers. DealerFire is one of the providers selected to assist dealers under Volkswagen’s recently launched initiative, which will feature three levels of paid advertising, service center profile pages, dealer-integrated coupons, call tracking and recording, and online visibility and reputation management.  

Through DealerFire’s three digital advertising packages — the premium version featuring a customizable HTML5 ad showcasing service coupons and messaging — participating Volkswagen dealers will get access to a Google AdWords-Certified search engine marketing specialist within DealerSocket’s team, all Google ad extensions, customizable reporting and display network designs, conversion tracking, and Top 3 position targeting all of which are available in DealerFire’s tools.  

  “What many dealers may not know is that two out of three visits to their websites are for parts and service. And customers who service their vehicles at a dealership are three times more likely to purchase or lease again from that same dealership,” Wagner said. “DealerFire is offering three comprehensive packages under Volkswagen’s service and parts advertising program, which the automaker made even more compelling by offering 50% co-op on all pay-per-click advertising that is dedicated to fixed ops.”  

     DealerFire was acquired by DealerSocket in 2015 and specializes in dealer websites and digital retailing. DealerFire also houses a full-service digital marketing agency that provides custom-written ads and marketing content, inventory and data targeting, marketing design, and transparent ROI reporting. DealerFire currently partners with sixteen OEMs and supports more than 2,000 dealer websites.DealerFire is the winner of nine-straight AWA Pinnacle Platform awards.   

  About DealerSocket  

DealerSocket is a leading provider of software for the automotive retail industry, offering a suite of seamlessly integrated products designed to help dealers sell and service vehicles more profitably while improving their customers’ experience. DealerSocket’s suite of products includes an advanced Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system, innovative Digital Marketing and Websites, a robust Vehicle Inventory Management tool, insightful Analytics Reporting, and solutions designed to streamline dealer operations. They include Desking, Credit Reporting, Compliance, and a Dealer Management System (DMS) for dealers of all sizes. DealerSocket employs nearly 1,000 team members serving more than 8,000 dealerships. For more information, visit DealerSocket.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.  

  Contact:  

Patrick Mendoza  

PMendoza@DealerSocket.com  

469-828-6325  

ATLANTA – With dealers increasingly turning to digital channels to buy and sell vehicles on their time and terms, Manheim continues to scale support for its Manheim Express mobile app to help make it even easier for dealers to tap into North America’s leading wholesale used vehicle marketplace. Based on dealer feedback and increased demand, Manheim continues growing, rolling out three enhancements to the Express mobile app:

• Growing the Manheim Express Concierge force to provide personal assistance to more dealers in listing their vehicles for sale through digital channels
• Enhanced “Make an Offer” capabilities, designed to help attract more buyers for Manheim Express listings
• Expansion to the company’s Trade Desk team to help match inventory to likely buyers, facilitating faster inventory turn

“We launched the Manheim Express app because we heard our dealer clients wanted access to the Manheim Marketplace in the palm of their hand,” said Derek Hansen, vice president of Offsite Solutions at Manheim. “The response from dealers has been phenomenal, and we’re continuing to bring new features and services that help make it even easier for them to buy and sell when and where makes the most sense for them.”

The first upgrade involves Manheim Express Concierge Service. Launched nationwide in February, Concierge Service provides dealers with a dedicated expert to help them sell vehicles more efficiently in the wholesale marketplace. Just a few months after launching across the country, the Concierge force is growing nearly 80 percent based on dealer demand for expert guidance and a hands-off way to get their vehicles listed quickly.

“Dealer demand for our Concierge service is growing daily,” said Hansen. “Sellers enjoy the advice our specialists provide, as well as the ability to move their inventory quickly without having to invest much of their own time in the process. Meanwhile, buyers have more vehicles available to purchase, as specialists help dealers get more vehicles into the wholesale marketplace faster.”

The second update to Manheim Express is the expansion of “Make an Offer” functionality. With this enhancement, dealers can select any combination of purchase options they want to offer potential buyers, ranging from “Bid,” to “Buy-Now” or “Make an Offer.” This gives dealers more flexibility in how they market their vehicles—helping to make their listings more appealing to a larger group of potential buyers.

Finally, Manheim’s Trade Desk team is also expanding. Created to build relationships with buyers and serve as a their “personal shopper,” the Trade Desk team works to identify vehicles of interest for buyers and help close deals for sellers. Advanced search technologies allow Trade Desk team members to proactively reach out to buyers and match them with Manheim Express inventory that is likely to appeal to them.

In 2018, Manheim sold more vehicles through digital channels than ever before with more than 2 million vehicles acquired by digital buyers. This trend is expected to increase in 2019 and beyond. As a result, Manheim, and Cox Automotive, will continue to invest in new solutions to help facilitate faster and easier digital transactions for clients.

For more information on Manheim Express, please visit http://www.mymanheim.com/express/

About Manheim (www.manheim.com)

Manheim® is North America's leading provider of end-to-end wholesale solutions that help dealer and commercial clients increase profits in their used vehicle operations. Through its physical, mobile and digital sales network, Manheim offers services for inventory management, buying and selling, floor planning, logistics, assurance and reconditioning. With its omni-channel approach, Manheim Marketplace enables wholesale vehicle clients more efficient ways to connect and transact business how and when they want. Approximately 18,000 team members help Manheim offer 8 million used vehicles annually, facilitating transactions representing nearly $58 billion in value. Headquartered in Atlanta, Manheim North America is a Cox Automotive™ brand. For more information, visit http://press.manheim.com.

Tolerance for incremental spending of over $2,500 is low – GfK 

New York, NY; May 23, 2019: With sophisticated digital and smart technologies generating headlines for automakers, many consumers are beginning to consider these devices and services as essential equipment for their own cars.
But GfK research shows that people who see smart auto technologies as “must haves” still may have misconceptions about what they might cost.

The GfK AutoMobility™ Auto Tech Insights 2019 report provides a broad look at the desires and concerns of new car “intenders” – those who plan to buy a new vehicle in the next six months – when it comes to smart devices and services. GfK is a leader in the automotive research space; its AutoMobility study is based on over 250,000 in-depth interviews each year. 

The Auto Tech Insights report is drawn from research among over 1,000 intenders interviewed during the AutoMobility research.    

For seven key emerging auto technologies measured – from Autonomous Vehicles to Augmented Reality – GfK found that only small proportions of intenders who see the technologies as “must haves” would be willing to pay $2,500 or more for them. (See Table 1.)

Click here to see the release with tables included

For example, 30% of intenders consider an Electric Vehicle a “must have” – but only one-quarter (8%) of those enthusiasts would pay an incremental cost of $2,500 or more for one. Similarly, 25% say an Autonomous Vehicle is essential for them – but only one-quarter (7%) see $2,500 or more as the right incremental price; in fact, the same proportion (7%) expects to pay less than $500.

In addition, close to half of intenders who are sold on the idea of an in-vehicle Infotainment System or a Connected Vehicle say they want to pay under $500 for the capability.

GfK also found that male intenders are more likely to consider smart vehicle tech as a “must have.” Men planning to buy a new car are twice as likely, for example, to see Autonomous Vehicles and Augmented Reality as essential, compared to female intenders. In addition, male intenders are almost twice as likely to view Infotainment Systems and Electric Vehicles as “must haves.” 

Lack of understanding may be an issue

The fact that some consumers may not understand the actual prices of auto technologies may be part of a larger lack of clarity about the space. GfK found, for example, that one-third to three-quarters of new car intenders say they know little or nothing about these in-vehicle technologies. Two-thirds (69%) say they “have not heard of” or “don’t know much about” Augmented Reality, for example, and close to half say the same about Autonomous Vehicles (48%) and Active Safety Technology (47%).

Among the generations, Baby Boomer intenders (ages 55 and up) are the most likely to report knowing little or nothing about these device and services, with levels up to 26 percentage points higher than the general population. (See Table 2.) Gen X intenders (ages 39 to 54) are generally more in line with the national averages, while Gen Y (ages 21 to 38) has the lowest levels of awareness. 

About GfK

GfK connects data and science. Innovative research solutions provide answers for key business questions around consumers, markets, brands and media – now and in the future. As a research and analytics partner, GfK promises its clients all over the world “Growth from Knowledge.” 

For more information, please visit www.gfk.com or follow GfK on Twitter: www.twitter.com/GfK.

Lotpop Joins MAX Digital Approved Vendor Circle

CHICAGO — May 21, 2019 — MAX Digital, the dealer-first digital retail software provider for the automotive industry, announced a service partnership with Lotpop. Participating dealers can leverage the MAX Digital inventory management product suite with the additional expert staffing and process guidance Lotpop provides to capture more gross and sell more cars.

“Everything we build is focused on delivering performance for our dealerships. Lotpop has the same total results focus,” said MAX Digital Executive Vice President Mike Cavanaugh. “Adding the dedicated experienced team that Lotpop provides to MAX tools simply creates a system that delivers undeniable results.”

MAX Digital provides a deep dataset for inventory management with millions of VINs analyzed daily, rich market data and store specific sales history to drive smart stocking decisions. Performance tracking can be customized by dealership and focus on core improvement areas like time to market for robust vehicle descriptions with a dealer set number of minimum images. Lotpop provides the staffing and system guidance and ongoing consistent review of dealership inventory processes to build sustained results over time.

“Since starting with Lotpop and MAX Digital, we have started having record used car sales. We’ve seen a 36% increase in front end gross year over year, all with millions less in carry costs,” shared Joe Uphoff, Reconditioning Manager of Galpin Honda, the second highest volume Honda store in the U.S. “Jasen and the Lotpop team offer you easy to understand usable data so that you can focus on the areas that matter for your store.”

“We’re proud of the exceptional value this partnership provides,” added Jasen Rice, owner Lotpop. “MAX Digital has rock solid professional grade tools that help us drive meaningful unit sales growth for our clients with a better gross per vehicle at a surprisingly low cost.”

“Our pricing advantage is important for Lotpop, because it allows them to bundle in their hands-on services and fully engage in the dealer’s processes, while still delivering significant total savings over tools clients had been using,” said Cavanaugh.

More information on Lotpop is available at lotpop.com. Vendors interested in joining the MAX Digital Approved Vendor Circle can contact info@maxdigital.com.

About MAX Digital

Founded in 2011, MAX Digital was born from a rich history of innovation and continues the pioneering spirit of FirstLook by delivering the professional tools needed to help dealerships thrive into the future. MAX Digital empowers thousands of dealerships to transform their retail processes to sell more cars more profitably through smart inventory management and people-friendly digital retail solutions. For more information visit maxdigital.com.

LEHI, Utah—May 21, 2019—Podium, the leading interaction management platform for local businesses, today announced the addition of Teamchat to its existing suite of interaction management tools. The new communication solution will help local businesses centralize company interactions and allow employees to conveniently collaborate internally within the same platform used to interact with customers and vendors.

With Teamchat, internal teams can exchange direct messages and group messages, include clickable links, send and receive attachments, and use mentions to help simplify and streamline internal communications. The solution centralizes interactions between team members, as well as between the company and customers.

“Podium Teamchat has allowed our teams to bring all our conversations into the same place, making it easy to collaborate on how to best help our fans,” says Ty Wardle, Director of Membership & Sales Services with the Utah Jazz. “Through the Podium Interaction Management platform, we’re able to easily manage every touchpoint with Jazz fans so we can maintain a superior customer experience while strengthening our business. Teamchat plays an integral role in this process because it empowers us to do more as a team by conveniently coordinating all our customer interactions.”

By centralizing interactions, employees can conveniently collaborate and drive leads into customers. Having conversations and sending information in context leads to better service for customers than simply sending memos, and convenient communication can help employees feel more engaged in work and improve camaraderie among coworkers. And unlike some other communication platforms, Teamchat has been specifically designed for local businesses.

“We set out to solve the review gap for local businesses, but in doing so, we found more pain points that we knew we could alleviate,” said Eric Rea, CEO of Podium. “This addition to our suite of interaction management solutions, will help make communication easier for these organizations in a way that email, text, and tools built for larger companies can’t. We know local businesses are the backbone of our economy—and our communities—and are dedicated to helping them be more efficient and successful.”

Founded in 2014, Podium is now working with more than 37,000 businesses. Creating more than 12 million customer interactions every month, nearly one in four (22%) U.S. smartphone owners have connected with a local business via Podium’s platform.

To learn more about Podium Teamchat, please visit podium.com/teamchat.

About Podium

Podium is an interaction management platform that enables companies with a local presence to conveniently connect with their customers at critical touchpoints to help them strengthen their business. By conveniently facilitating millions of customer interactions, such as driving customer-generated online reviews and providing improved customer messaging tools, Podium serves more than 37,000 local businesses to create over 12 million interactions with their customers a month. Headquartered in Lehi, Utah, and founded in 2014, Podium is currently backed by IVP, Accel, Summit Partners, GV (formerly Google Ventures), and Y Combinator. To learn more, visit www.podium.com or contact us at press@podium.com.

Generational Expert to Share Valuable Insights and New Research about Success in Automotive Retail

DALLAS, May 20, 2019 — DealerSocket, Inc., a leading software company for the automotive industry, announced today that it has selected Jason Dorsey, Co-founder and President of The Center for Generational Kinetics, who is a best-selling author and the leading generations speaker, and whose family has worked in the automotive industry for more than 30 years, to deliver the Keynote Address at its user summit. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Jason to the DealerSocket User Summit as a keynote speaker in what is an important event for the automotive industry,” said Sejal Pietrzak, President and CEO of DealerSocket. “It will be valuable for our customers to hear from Jason and leverage his unique research as he offers specific, practical solutions to drive measurable results for dealerships.”

Scheduled for August 21-23, 2019, at the Marriott in Anaheim, Calif., DealerSocket’s User Summit 2019 has the theme of “Drive” and will provide attendees with three days of innovation, education, and collaboration. Dorsey will deliver his keynote address on day one of the conference in what promises to be an entertaining and insightful presentation on how generations buy and work in automotive, how to market and sell to each generation, and he will unveil his research center’s latest findings into the newest generation that is rapidly emerging as consumers, employees, and trendsetters: Gen Z.

“There has never been a more urgent and important time to understand Gen Z and Millennials in the auto industry,” said Dorsey. “Millennials now outspend every other generation of consumers and are the largest group in the workforce. Gen Z, already age 23, are ushering in a new era of communication, engagement, and expectations that will drive new change on every side of the automotive industry.”

Dorsey wrote his first bestselling book at age 18, and he is considered the most sought-after millennial and Gen Z speaker and researcher. He has been featured on more than 200 TV shows, including60 Minutes, 20/20, The Today Show, CNN, CNBC, and The Early Show. His family worked in the automotive industry for more than 30 years.

“I’m incredibly excited to share at DealerSocket’s User Summit our center’s latest research into these essential generations—in particular, the hidden drivers behind their mindset as customers and employees—as well as specific actions that dealers can implement immediately,” he continued.

“Each of the strategies and actions I share will work whether an attendee represents 50 dealerships or an individual location. My recommendation is to bring as many leaders as possible from your dealership to DealerSocket’s User Summit, because each will leave with specific actions they can use immediately to help your dealership, from marketing and customer engagement to fixed ops satisfaction scores and sales consultant retention. This is the exact right time for dealership leaders to separate myth from truth with these important generations and I’m incredibly excited that DealerSocket is leading such an important industry conversation,” said Dorsey.

About DealerSocket

DealerSocket is a leading provider of software for the automotive industry, offering a suite of seamlessly integrated products to help dealers sell and service vehicles more profitably, while improving their customers’ experience. DealerSocket’s suite of products includes advanced Customer Relationship Management (CRM), innovative Digital Marketing and Websites, robust Vehicle Inventory Management, insightful Analytics Reporting, and solutions to streamline dealer operations such as Desking, Credit Reporting, Compliance, and a Dealer Management System (DMS) for dealers of all sizes. DealerSocket employs nearly 1,000 team members serving more than 8,000 dealerships. For more information, visit DealerSocket.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

Contact:

Patrick Mendoza

PMendoza@DealerSocket.com

469-828-6325

###

Your VDP is one of the most important aspects of your marketing. Improving your sellers notes will help your customers see the value that is included for that particular vehicle. Price, pictures, and description are the three most important factors that will allow your VDP to stand out. Price can always change, pictures should be a high priority, but often neglected, the description often talks about the brand name and it a copy and paste for every vehicle. 

Improve your VDP by writing a unique description for each vehicle with as much context as possible. That is the best way to stand out.

What success have you seen with VDP's with great descriptions?

The Vehicle Intelligence Company Adds Second Customer Service Award, Bringing Total Awards for 2019 to Five

IRVINE, Calif., May 14, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Spireon, the vehicle intelligence company, today announced that it has been named a winner in the 2019 Excellence in Customer Service Award for Technology of the Year by the Business Intelligence Group. Spireon was selected due to its deep investment in product innovation and dedication to develop deeper relationships with its 20,000+ customers while ensuring customer success.

"2018 was another stellar year for Spireon, amplified by our white-glove customer service and the superior value delivered by our connected vehicle solutions," said Rashid Ismail, CIO at Spireon. "Our customers are at the center of everything we do and the recognition by the Business Intelligence group further proves our customer-first philosophy far exceeds industry standards and that our team continues to raise the bar in customer service."

This recognition marks the second customer service award win for Spireon this year. Spireon's 2018 average Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 72 far exceeds the industry average of 21.4 for B2B technology companies. Spireon credits a comprehensive customer onboarding program, regular customer interaction by multiple teams at the company, and 24×7 phone support by expert resources. On average, customer service calls are answered within 59 seconds. 

"Year after year the role of customer service plays a more important role in all of our lives," said Maria Jimenez, chief operating officer of the Business Intelligence Group. "We are thrilled to be honoring Spireon as they are leading by example and making real progress on improving the daily lives of so many."

Organizations from across the globe submitted their customer service and success strategies and platforms for consideration in the BIG Excellence in Customer Service Awards. Nominations were then judged by a select group of business leaders and executives who volunteer their time and expertise to score submissions.

About Business Intelligence Group 
The Business Intelligence Group was founded with the mission of recognizing true talent and superior performance in the business world. Unlike other industry award programs, these programs are judged by business executives having experience and knowledge. The organization's proprietary and unique scoring system selectively measures performance across multiple business domains and then rewards those companies whose achievements stand above those of their peers.

About Spireon  
Spireon, the vehicle intelligence company, is the leading provider of aftermarket telematics solutions in North America. By equipping cars, trucks, trailers and other mobile assets with GPS devices and sensors, Spireon turns any vehicle into a connected vehicle. Award-winning products GoldStar, Kahu and FleetLocate deliver 24x7 asset visibility and actionable insights to auto dealers, lenders, transportation companies, service fleet managers, rental car companies and consumers to increase safety and productivity, boost profits and protect assets. Spireon's NSpire IoT platform powers all Spireon solutions, supporting nearly 4 million active subscribers and processing more than 1 billion data events each month. Learn more at www.spireon.com.

Connect with us: 
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Media Contact:
Havas Formula for Spireon
spireon@havasformula.com
619-234-0345

Business Intelligence Group Media Contact:
Maria Jimenez, Chief Nominations Officer
Business Intelligence Group
jmaria@bintelligence.com 
909-529-2737

 Insights on digital retailing, predictive analytics, millennial buyers, and marketing insights competed onstage at the DrivingSales Presidents Club event in New York City in April

Salt Lake City, UT – May 8, 2019 – DrivingSales today announced the results of the 2019 DrivingSales Most Valuable Insight Competition, which was created to foster the spirit of progress and thought leadership in the auto industry.  Finalists were asked to provide an insight that would provide significant value to dealership executives.  They were selected from a competitive field of submissions by a dealer board. Each finalist competed onstage at the 2019 DrivingSales Presidents Club event, held at the Grand Hyatt in New York City, April 15-16, 2019.

“There are so many creative innovators in our industry that we wanted to provide a special forum for uncovering insights that can create significant change and benefit, but that are often overlooked or unheralded,” said DrivingSales Founder and CEO Jared Hamilton. “This is our chance to hear from the deep thinkers among us – those who have an intuitive understanding of the automotive industry and who are constantly seeking to improve it. We congratulate the finalists, each of whose insights – whether on mobile or millennials or marketing metrics - will provide immediate value not only to the executives attending the Presidents Club, but to all dealership leaders on the look-out for smart ways to improve their operations.”

The 2019 DrivingSales Most Valuable Insight results are:

Winner, Most Valuable Insight: “Purchase Demand Index” by Experian Automotive.

Finalist: “Digital Retailing and the Crucial ‘Can I Afford It?’ Moment” by Dealer Inspire

Finalist: “Quiet the Assault and Keep the Customer You Paid For” by LiveMarketing

Finalist: “Keeping Sales Agents with Customers Increases CSI and Saves You Money” by Roadster

Finalist: “The Third Party Influence on Your First Party Traffic” presented by Cars.com

Each finalist presented their insight onstage at the DrivingSales Presidents Club event. A panel of dealer judges scored each presentation.  The 2019 Most Valuable Insight will be presented in more detail at the 2019 DrivingSales Executive Summit held in October in Las Vegas.

The Most Valuable Insight Competition is part of a high-level line-up at the DrivingSales Presidents Club, an intimate and collaborative event. The event is designed to help an elite audience of dealership principals and general managers build the strategies they need to adapt to a changing automotive retail market – and to lead it. The event focuses on the three foundational elements of successful dealership operations – Capital, Brand and People.

Visit www.drivingsalespresidentsclub.com for more information and to register for the event.

For more information about the DrivingSales Most Valuable Insight Competition, go to http://drivingsalespresidentsclub.com/most-valuable-insight/.

About DrivingSales

Founded in 2008 and dedicated to the dealer community, DrivingSales is a business intelligence and performance improvement company that delivers unbiased*, profit-building information to make automobile dealers more successful through three distinct channels: DrivingSales Data, DrivingSales Human Capital Management and DrivingSales Media.  Approximately one in every three dealerships in the United States has a registered member in the DrivingSales community.

*Vendor Neutral Policy: Dedicated solely to making dealerships more profitable, while also providing benefit to automakers and the industry as a whole, DrivingSales adheres to a strict vendor neutral policy through each of its channels. This means the company only provides unbiased information, not ‘pay-to-play’ follow up services -- and never accepts payment in exchange for media coverage or lets potential advertisers dictate messaging or create bias in any of its channels.

Initial Implementation to Utilize Altair’s Cellular IoT Chipset Platform to Facilitate New Range of On-Board Telematics Devices Without Connection to Car’s Power Supply

HOD HASHARON, Israel – Altair Semiconductor (altair-semi.com), a leading provider of cellular IoT chipsets, announced it is partnering with ERM Advanced Telematics, a global provider of automotive technology and IoT solutions, to develop a new range of low-powered and installation-free automotive IoT solutions.

ERM’s new set of IoT and asset management solutions leverages Altair’s optimized cellular IoT chipsets to provide installation-free solutions for IoT, asset management, stolen vehicle recovery (SVR) and vehicle financial services. These will include event-based platforms for automatic vehicle location and asset management applications using various sensors. The ultra-low power consumption of Altair’s chipsets allows the device to be connected without having to be powered by the vehicle’s battery, significantly reducing installation costs.

“As installation costs continue to rise in comparison to hardware prices, Altair’s unparalleled low power figures and extended battery life means we can provide on-board solutions with minimal installation requirements that are able to remain in the field for up to two years,” said Kfir Lavi, Senior VP and Deputy CEO at ERM Advanced Telematics. “This will usher in a new dawn for IoT and asset management, opening up a whole new market of applications for a wide range of automotive IoT scenarios.”

Altair’s optimized cellular IoT chipsets are the industry’s most advanced, providing the market’s lowest power consumption and enabling the longest battery life for IoT. Commercially available, they feature a hardware-based security framework and a rich set of host, peripheral and sensor interfaces, ideal for integration in a range of industrial and consumer IoT applications.

“Low power consumption is essential for the efficient and long-term growth of the automotive IoT space,” said Gili Friedman, Director of Business Management for Altair Semiconductor. “We are delighted that ERM Advanced Telematics has selected Altair’s cellular IoT technology to provide the low cost and power-efficient connectivity necessary to enable new markets and use cases.”

About Altair Semiconductor

Altair Semiconductor, a Sony Group Company, is a leading provider of LTE chipsets for IoT. The company's flagship ALT1250 is the smallest and most highly integrated LTE Cat-M and NB-IoT chipset, featuring ultra-low power consumption, hardware-based security and a carrier-grade integrated SIM. Altair partners with leading global vendors, including G+D (Giesecke+Devrient), HERE Technologies, Murata, Sierra Wireless and WNC, to provide low-power and cost-efficient modules for a range of industrial and consumer IoT applications such as trackers, smart meters, wearables and vehicle telematics. Altair's chipsets have been commercially deployed on the world's most advanced LTE networks, including AT&T, China Mobile, KDDI, Softbank, Verizon and Vodafone.

For more information, visit www.altair-semi.com.  Follow Altair on Twitter: @AltairSemi and LinkedIn: Altair Semiconductor

About ERM Advanced Telematics  

ERM Advanced Telematics is an international technology company focused on automotive, Asset Management and IoT solutions, whose technologies and products are installed in millions of vehicles worldwide. ERM was founded in 1985, based in Israel and operates in over 65 countries in North, Central and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia through its service providers' partner channels. The company offers both hardware and software solutions, designed, developed and manufactured in its Israeli facilities. ERM offers a wide range of modular solutions that operate on a range of wireless technologies, including cellular, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and various Radio Frequencies. The solutions are designed to improve the protection, management and diagnostic of vehicles and valuable assets, reducing operational costs, and provide valuable information for better decision making.

For more information, visit https://ermtelematics.com/

For further details: Alon Mlievski, +972-50-4438778

Meirovitch Public Relations, tel. +972-77-2129988