One month after its launch, a total of 240,000 ADAC members have downloaded its iPhone bCall app for localised roadside breakdown assistance. During this initial four week period, approximately 4,000 requests for roadside assistance were generated by the smartphone application.

ADAC, the leading German motoring club with 17.3 million members, has developed the iPhone bCall app using the ARC Europe Telematics Platform (ATP) to handle the assistance requests. ARC Europe is a consortium of European motoring clubs that has been established to share traffic information and develop telematics technologies.

ARC Europe research says that 86% of callers do not know their exact location when they make request roadside assistance. The ADAC bCall app uses the GPS receiver built into the iPhone to provide the position of the incident.

Smartphone apps similar to the ADAC bCall service have also been developed by the ÖATMC in Austria and AA in the UK. Bringing apps into the car is a key trend for many vehicle manufacturers who are mainly working on Terminal Mode and GENIVI solutions. The current focus on Apple and Android operating systems may move to Windows Phone OS following the recent emergence of the Nokia-Microsoft partnership.

According to recommendations made in SBD’s research on automotive apps and smartphone integration in the car, whilst apps like ADAC’s bCall are currently a hot topic in the automotive infotainment industry, SBD believes vehicle manufacturers will not add significant value to OE systems by simply duplicating smartphone apps in the car.

However, the ‘app for everything’ consumer attitude and government restrictions on smartphone usage whilst driving are forcing vehicle manufacturers to develop solutions that will allow safe access to some of the users’ favourite apps.

For more information on SBD’s research into integrating automotive apps and its exclusive consumer surveys on the usage of automotive apps, contact Juanita Appleby on jappleby@sbd.co.uk