Smartcar, a company that develops apps and platforms for connected cars, has released its annual report on the state of in-car technology, and the results don’t bode well for automakers trying to get that extra recurring payment out of its customers. You may remember the furor when everyone thought their 3 Series would require a subscription for heated seats.
According to the report, 96 percent of cars will be Wi-Fi-connected with access to services by 2030. The problem is that people are suffering from subscription fatigue and are not interested in more subscriptions draining their bank accounts. A survey of 1,000 drivers in Europe and the US shows 76 percent of them haven’t signed up for their car’s connected services subscription, whether free or paid. But there is some hope for automakers trying to get that extra recurring payment.
Subscription Services Need Value Added To A Car
According to the Smartcar survey, only 11 percent of the drivers said they had no interest in a subscription service. It’s not a great hope for automakers, though, as 50 percent of those that could be interested would try a subscription if the cost was lower. Which is easily interpreted to mean they need genuine value – and unlocking features already built into a car is not perceived as value. To pick an automaker at random to see what’s offered (and truly, I just looked out the window to pick the first car I could see), and here’s what I found.
Key Hyundai BlueLink Subscription Services (as advertised March 17, 2025):
- Remote start with climate control
- Remote door lock & unlock
- On-demand diagnostics and alerts
- Destination search
- Remote car finder
- Vehicle Charging Dashboard
- Enhanced Roadside Assistance
- Geofence, curfew, and speed alert
The above is offered free for three years and then split into packages once Hyundai starts charging. According to Hyundai, all three packages together cost $297 per year or $29.70 per month after those three years. Now, there is clear value in enhanced roadside assistance assuming your car insurance or phone plan or whatever doesn’t include a roadside assistance service. Geofence, curfew, and speed alert are a solid set of services if you are letting new drivers drive the car. Remote car finder and on-demand diagnostics and alerts are debatable as something that should be part of the initial purchase if you’re going to offer an app, but okay.
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However, a vehicle charging dashboard feels forced. Remote start, remote climate control, and remote door unlocking (pun intended) features already built into the car come across as a cash grab. Destination search is just hooking the voice recognition system to the onboard navigation, which, again, is a prime example of an existing feature being unblocked for extra money.
“Bluelink costs $9.90 per month after the three-year trial period. There are three Bluelink packages: Connected Care, Remote, and Guidance. Each package costs $99 per year or $9.90 per month. The Connected Care package is included for free for all new Bluelink-equipped vehicles. Currently, there are no à la carte options available.”
– Hyundai’s Website ‘Hey Hyundai’ chatbot.
At first glance, it seems like a good feature list for a subscription, but on closer inspection, it looks like product management didn’t say “Hey, we could add value to the car with these connected services as services, but they need upkeep on our end, so we need to charge for them and then make a little profit,” but instead came up with things it could charge extra for to make more money. It’s a distinction, and an important one. One is creating a subscription service just to create a subscription service to cynically make a profit, the other is offering customers an extra package full of value for a cost and then some profit over the top.
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Subscription Fatigue Is Real
This is just one example, but this kind of thing isn’t going to hold up for automakers. Subscription fatigue is a real thing, and people are tired of corporations trying to squeeze every last cent out of them. We’re at the point where a whole industry is developing to help people track subscriptions, figure out what they’re paying for but don’t use, and even automatically cancel subscriptions for them. On top of that, it’s hard to come up with real value-adds when people already have their music subscriptions, free navigation (with voice, Hyundai) on their phones, and other industries are bundling in things like roadside assistance to attract them to their services.
Source: Smartcar
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