This Is How Automotive Advertisers Are Building Their Brands With Data Both local and relevant By Collective

According to a recent study conducted by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), 96 percent of consumers research online before making a large purchase, especially when considering a new car. During this period, these prospective auto buyers were more likely than the general population to be influenced by digital ads, including search and pre-roll ads.

This is why automotive advertisers must position themselves to be both local and relevant, and that means targeting the right audience through digital channels including online, display, video and television using programmatic, multiscreen solutions.

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GM Is Moving Deeper Into ‘Next Frontier’ of Virtualization

General Motors Co.GM -0.87% is joining the ranks of large companies that are replacing traditional hardware such as storage and networking gear with software, a process known as virtualization.

Like most companies, GM began to virtualize mainframes and servers years ago, and that process is more or less complete. Now, having seen the economic and operational benefits of that process, GM is moving to virtualize other elements of its IT infrastructure, according to Jeff Liedel, executive director of the company’s global IT operations. He is based at the company’s $130 million data center in Warren, Mich.,which was modeled on IT infrastructure developed by Internet companies such as Facebook Inc. and Google Inc. The data center project was overseen by CIO Randy Mott.

“Virtualization brings a lot of benefits,” Mr. Liedel told CIO Journal. The virtualization of the server market paved the way for the spread of many kinds of cloud computing over the last few years, because it facilitated the sharing of hardware by multiple users. He expects that the expansion of virtualization into new areas of IT will have a significant impact, too.

“From a cost perspective, virtualization allows us to better leverage the hardware that we have across a variety of domains. We see the utilization of capital go up, and that is a good thing for any company.”

Virtualization allows companies to run software on lower-cost commodity machines. Assuming a certain degree of standardization among lower-cost gear makers, GM will be able to include hardware from a variety of vendors in its infrastructure. “We will be able to mix suppliers in a more seamless fashion. Virtualization allows you to have a multi-vendor environment and be less reliant on proprietary tools,” Mr. Liedel said.

GM has virtualized about 80% of its servers. As Mr. Liedel said, the company always will have a need for some servers that are linked to specific applications, so the level will never reach 100%. Virtualization of storage is in the early stages, and is only about 10% to 20% complete. Network virtualization is in the exploratory stages, but promises benefits such as dashboards that make it easier and faster to configure the network. “Software-based management tools make it easy to reallocate storage of networking capacity. You don’t have to physically recable something,” Mr. Liedel said.

Further into the future, he expects more applications to be virtualized.  Years ago, all applications had their own logon or password components. “Other functions and applications can be virtualized,” Mr. Liedel said. “I think that is the next frontier.”

http://blogs.wsj.com/cio/2014/06/11/gm-is-moving-deeper-into-next-frontier-of-virtualization/

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Nissan Debuts 'Futuristic' Murano With NASA-Inspired Seats

Nissan took the wraps off it latest version of the Nissan Murano SUV at the New York International Auto Show in New York on Wednesday.

On hand to introduce the vehicle to the American public was Nissan's senior vice president and chief creative officer, Shiro Nakamura.

According Nissan, the slightly futuristic design aesthetic of the 2015 Murano is inspired by the Nissan Resonance concept vehicle unveiled back in 2013.

"At Nissan, we create concept vehicles with an eye toward production, rather than just for entertaining auto show audiences," says Nakamura. "Likely few people who saw Resonance in its North American International Auto Show debut imagined that we could build such a futuristic design. But here it is, ready to hit Nissan showrooms less than 24 months later.”

Nevertheless, fans of the old version of the Murano aren't necessarily in for any major culture shock, as the vehicle's new accents are really only a slight departure from its predecessor.

IMAGE: MASHABLE, ADARIO STRANGE

The new Murano's most noticeable nod to the Resonance concept is at the rear, where the rectangular exhaust and extending curved tail lights definitely give the normally conservative looking vehicle a bit of design whimsy. The front of the vehicle, particularly the headlight design, also mirrors the aggressive lines present in the Resonance concept.

IMAGE: MASHABLE, ADARIO STRANGE 

And, in case you aren't getting the "futuristic" message, Nissan also claims that the new Murano's "zero gravity" seats, which include embedded USB ports, are directly inspired by NASA. The vehicle also features safety system also offers predictive forward collision warnings, cross-traffic alerts and an around view monitor.

IMAGE: MASHABLE, ADARIO STRANGE 

Another option available in the 2015 Murano is NissanConnect, the carmaker's navigation and app system, which allows the driver to connect his or her mobile devices to the car.

The 2015 Murano is slated to go on sale in late 2014.

http://mashable.com/2014/04/16/nissan-concept-inspired-murano/#_

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Google Unveils Self-Driving Car Prototype

IMAGE: GOOGLE

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, Calif. — Google has been building self-driving cars for years, but what we've seen so far has always been retrofits of existing cars — until now. The search giant unveiled on Tuesday a fully autonomous self-driving car, built from the ground up by Google and its partners.

Company co-founder Sergey Brin revealed his plans at Recode's Code Conference in southern California. He told Recode editors Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher (who has ridden in the car), that there's a safety benefit in a custom-built self-driving car. Because the car doesn't have a steering wheel, accelerator or brakes, it has more sensors in strategic spots than is possible in a regular vehicle. It is also equipped with a big "stop" button. In addition to all this tech, Google's autonomous car includes internal power steering and power brakes.

"It was inspiring to start with a blank sheet of paper and ask, 'What should be different about this kind of vehicle?'" Chris Urmson, director of the Self-Driving Car Project, wrote in a blog post about the new car.

Swisher said riding in the all-electric car was like going on a Disney ride. Considering it currently has a maximum speed of roughly 25 mph, this makes sense. Brin described riding in the car, which in one test was programmed via smartphone, as "relaxing," and similar to catching a chairlift. He added that the car will eventually go up to 100 mph once it's proven to be able to travel safely at that speed.

As for when the cars — which are significantly smaller than traditional cars and include couch-like seating — might actually make it to real highways, Brin said Google will soon test them with drivers. "Within a couple of years, we'll — if we’ve passed the safety metrics we've put in place, which is to be significantly safer than a human driver ... have them on the road," he said.

http://mashable.com/2014/05/27/google-self-driving-car/

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Car Dashes May Be Next Frontier In Targeted Advertising

SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) — The car may be the next frontier in delivering advertising content to consumers.

Location based ads are popping up in dashboards across the country, and location is just the beginning of the trend. Advertisers are targeting consumers by their vehicle type, the music they listen to, and anything else they may do with their dash.

“If you like the ad, you click the thumbs up and you get a reminder email sent with a coupon on your phone that you can then take into the store,” Alistair Goodman of Placecast, an ad placement company said.

Automakers like BMW, Ford, and Lincoln are rolling them out.

But, the ads are seen by some as a distraction for drivers.

“When you receive an ad, you need to sort of process that information, think about it, see if you want to take it, and then press a button to confirm it,” Ron Montoya of Edmunds.com said.

As for privacy, advertisers say the information collected is safe.

“We make very clear what data will be collected, and we don’t resell that data to any other parties,” Goodman said.

Pandora recently announced they are also sending ads to screens in cars.

http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/05/13/ads-placement-driver-distractioncar-dashes-may-be-next-frontier-in-targeted-advertising/

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4 Ways Marketers Will Benefit From the New iPhone Strong retail potential By Garett Sloane

June 3, 2014, 6:07 PM EDT

Marketers are imagining new mobile campaigns and content now that Apple revealed the future of the iPhone at its developers conference this week. There were hints at how iBeacon technology could work, and announcements that were mostly intended for the developer community held clear implications for advertisers.

"A lot of services Apple introduced, HealthKit and CloudKit [in particular], are going to offer opportunities for brands to engage," said Craig Elimeliah, svp, director of creative technology at Rapp. 

Here's a summary of what Apple's moves mean to marketers.

HealthKit

iBeacon teased
Advertisers and brands were hoping to hear more about iBeacon, a device that could revolutionize shopping with the help of data, but Apple did not reveal the hardware.

"What they did at least was speak about something that will make beacons appeal to brands and users even more," said Jeremy Sigel, client director of mobile at Essence.

Sigel was referencing the next mobile operating system, iOS 8, which has a notification system perfectly designed for retail messaging through beacons, Sigel said. Dubbed Interactive Notifications, it allows messages to get through to users engaged in other activities on their phones.

"There's a fear on the brand side," Sigel said. "They don't want to be interruptive."

The notification also can serve content that users can easily interact with or ignore. Marketers expect the iBeacon to allow them to share that content while consumers are walking the aisles at stores.

Health
Apple's HealthKit is a platform for users to monitor their general wellness. Brands focused on health, healthcare, nutrition and activity will be looking to connect on the iPhone. Elimeliah, who works with Pfizer and Merck, said big pharm brands are natural candidates to build for Apple in ways they were previously reluctant to explore.

"There are challenges to get clients to innovate in that space but, now that Apple provided a platform there, will be less apprehension," he said.

Home
The HomeKit is Apple's biggest step into the connected world, turning the iPhone into the ultimate remote control. People will automate their environments based on time of day and what they’re doing with settings for "partying" or "ready for bed."

"Targeting people based on moods and context is very much on the table," Sigel said.

App is back
Brands see new incentives to build their own apps with Apple's new coding language calledSwift. It is expected to make it cheaper and easier to build apps.

"More brands will develop apps in the next year or two than we’ve ever seen before," said Ryan McLaughlin, chief strategy officer at Tribal Worldwide. 

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The auto maker is testing a new type of paint that repels mud, rain, and dirt to turn the Nissan Note into a "self-cleaning" car.

Leah Gonzalez 

Cars don’t wash themselves. Owners have to either put in the time and effort to clean them up themselves at their own driveways or shell out a few bucks so the nearest car wash can take care of it.

That may all change with a new technology that Nissan in Europe has been testing on the Nissan Note. The car brand is doing tests on an innovative paint technology that repels rain, mud and dirt.

The paint technology, called Ultra-Ever Dry®, is a product marketed and sold by UltraTech International Inc. and is a specially-engineered super hydrophobic and oleophic paint, which means it is designed to repel water and oil.

Nissan Europe applied the paint to the Nissan Note to transform it into the “world’s first self-cleaning car.” The paint creates a protective layer that stops water and road dirt from making marks on the surface of the car.

Engineers at the Nissan Technical Centre Europe are assessing the effectiveness of the paint technology as a potential application that car owners can get aftermarket. It’s the first time that the technology is being applied on the body of an automobile.

The paint has worked well against common factors such as rain, spray, frost, sleet and standing water. Researchers at the Nissan Technical Centre will continue to test the “self-cleaning” car in different conditions over the next few months.

Nissan Europe has released a video showing what the paint can do for a car. In the video, they applied the Ultra-Ever Dry paint to half of the car and took the car out for a spin, making sure to drive through all sorts of puddles and muddy road tracks. The difference between the two halves is clear, with one half is covered in dirt and the other half still shiny.

At the moment, the auto maker has no plans to include the self-cleaning paint technology as a standard in the Nissan Note, but it won’t close its doors to the possibility of having it as an aftermarket option in the future.

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A Vision of the Future From Those Likely to Invent It

From employment to leisure and transportation to education, tech is changing the world at a faster pace than ever before. Already, people wear computers on their faces, robots scurry through factories and battlefields and driverless cars dot the highway that cuts through Silicon Valley. Almost two-thirds of Americans think technological change will lead to a better future, while about one-third think people’s lives will be worse as a result, according to a new survey from Pew Research Center. Regardless, expect more change. In a series of interviews, which have been condensed and edited, seven people who are driving this transformation provided a glimpse into the not-too-distant future.

Have a look at this step-by-step Infographic here

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Going for zero in the automotive industry

STEM experts are at the forefront of innovation in the drive to produce the carbon-friendly cars of the future

Clean getaway: the new Metrocab produces 75 per cent less carbon dioxide than the current London taxi

By Chris Moss

Cars used to be measured by their ability to get from nought to 60 miles per hour in the fastest possible time. Now the race is on to get back to zero – emissions, that is.

The Government has already provided positive incentives – including grants of up to £8,000 for buyers of plug-in cars and vans – but legislation means car makers will soon be obliged to develop ultra-green technologies.

Last month, Mayor of London Boris Johnson announced that new taxis presented for licensing in the capital would have to be zero-emissions capable from January 1, 2018.

Students doing degrees in STEM subjects will be in increasing demand as the UK’s car manufacturing industry continues its green evolution.

“The face of car engineering is changing, and so are its engineers,” says Dave Suckley, human resources senior controller at Nissan, which sold its 100,000th Leaf last month. “The industry is becoming leaner, cleaner and smarter. The creativity and lateral thinking of highly skilled engineers enable our cars to be built. They are a key component in a production process that creates 2,000 vehicles a day.”

Launched in 2010, the Leaf was the world’s first mass-market zero-emissions electric vehicle. The latest model has an improved driving range of 123 miles, aimed at meeting the distances travelled by more than 80 per cent of motorists. Nissan Sunderland, where the Leaf is manufactured, is the UK’s biggest car plant, with 6,100 employees.

Suckley says teamwork and ambition are vital for developing cutting-edge automotive technologies. “We work in an environment where everyone pulls together in strong teams.

"We’re after people who meet challenges head on and are constantly looking to improve themselves. Another quality we require is a willingness to take responsibility. Graduate engineers are given responsibility for a small area within the plant, and their role will grow as they gain knowledge and experience.”

The new Metrocab, designed and built in Surrey by Ecotive, a sister company of electric powertrain specialist Frazer-Nash, can operate with zero emissions using its lithium-ion battery pack and, overall, produces 75 per cent less carbon dioxide than the current London taxi. What is widely recognised as groundbreaking is its extended range. In trials, the six-seater taxi has achieved runs of more than 347 miles without being topped up.

Gordon Dixon, regional operations director at Frazer-Nash, says such innovation is a result of aptitude combined with attitude. “What is learnt at college provides the baseline but there is a strong opinion here that a good employee is more than a piece of paper.

"We are always pushing the boundaries of technology and a lot of what we do is not taught to students as it will not yet be in the public domain, or even thought of at the time they are studying. Skills can always be developed but attitudes and passion are inherent in a person. The human elements often carry greater weight then degrees or accomplishments.”

Engineering recruitment agencies are also shifting their attention to environmental specialisms. “The field of green technology will open up new career paths,” says Keith Lewis, managing director of Matchtech.

“Reducing waste and pollution, creating manufactured products that can be reused, and the development of alternative fuels are just some examples of areas where the next generation of engineers will find opportunities to produce innovative changes to our daily life.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/education/uk-stem-awards/10678389/carbon-friendly-car-development.html

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