Microsoft's three major moves in the automotive industry exposed "car ambitions"

A joke is circulating in the American automobile industry: One day, a Microsoft computer engineer met a Detroit automotive engineer. Computer engineers ridiculed and said: "Your auto industry is developing too slowly. If the speed of automotive technology can keep up with the speed of development of Microsoft technology, the current car should have been 32 cylinders, 10,000 mph, and the price is less than 50 US dollars. "!" The Microsoft engineer said, thinking that the car engineers would be ashamed, but the car engineer sneered: "But who will buy a car that crashes three times a day?"

As an IT giant, when Microsoft decided to enter the automotive industry in 1995, it was questioned by the automotive industry. Recently, Microsoft has done three "big moves" that have caused widespread concern in the automotive world.

Three major actions exposed "automotive ambition"

On June 6th, Microsoft appointed Jeff Bayer, former vice president of product strategy at the Dai-Ke Group, as president of its interactive entertainment business. Bayer became famous at Chrysler for using online games to promote cars. The implementation of Bayer this time, Microsoft mainly fancy him familiar with the automotive industry and automotive-related electronic products market.

On July 6, the FIA ​​announced that Microsoft had succeeded in the fierce bidding and became the official engine control system sponsor of the 2008 season F1. This shows Microsoft's "ambition" to enter the automotive industry's most core technology areas.

On July 16, Microsoft’s car dealership management software was listed in the United States on a high profile. Bill Gates announced that car dealers can use this software to manage the global sales network.

At the listing ceremony, John Reed, Sales Director of Microsoft Automotive Division, said: “The scale of the automotive industry and the automotive marketing market is very attractive. Although we are latecomers, we are very confident about the future of software products.” Reid also Admitting that Microsoft will use "more competitive" price advantage when entering the automotive industry.

Competition in the automotive sector is more intense than the office

Someone had predicted that in the future the car would become "a computer with four wheels," which is exactly what Microsoft expects.

The head of the Microsoft Automotive Division said: "With the popularity of electronic devices and communication systems in the automotive industry, automotive companies are looking for a standard software platform. What is more than Microsoft's largest software company? Does it fit?"

Microsoft believes that the automotive industry is a huge opportunity for Microsoft's development, but Microsoft's development in the automotive industry is not smooth.

In 1995, Microsoft established the Automotive Division. The goal set at that time was to make Microsoft products as popular as the office in the automotive world.

However, Microsoft later discovered that its competition in the automotive sector is much fiercer than in the office. Here, Microsoft has no absolute advantage, and there are many options for automakers. For example, three companies in Japan: Toyota, Honda, and Nissan have established a non-profit organization dedicated to developing international standards for automotive electronic operating software; GM has announced that its OnStar system can occur while a car accident occurs and airbags open. , Automatically contact emergency service center and so on. Microsoft also faces competition from some industrial operating systems in the automotive market, such as Win-River's VxWorks embedded operating system, free Linux system, and QNX Neutrino embedded operating system.

These company's products have the inherent advantages of matching with the car, which is unmatched by Microsoft.

Looking for "诀窍" into the automotive industry

In the automotive world, Microsoft also has features that these competitors do not have.

The advantage of Microsoft's car window system is that it can be directly compatible with software used on many computers, and users are more familiar with the interface and usage of these software. At this year's Geneva Motor Show, Microsoft demonstrated a production car with a full version of its mobile Windows operating system. At the subsequent Hannover Communications Technology Show, Microsoft also launched a concept car with full access to the Internet.

In terms of management software, Microsoft also has a unique advantage. In May of this year, Microsoft introduced a solution for automotive parts suppliers. The person in charge of the project said: "With the increasingly fierce competition in the automotive industry, suppliers can increase profits if they can use computer systems to effectively allocate resources. Microsoft's system is to help suppliers do this."

David Cole, chairman of the Ann Arbor Automotive Research Center in Michigan, said: "The purpose of Microsoft's move is to raise awareness in the automotive industry."

While continuing to develop software for the automotive industry, Microsoft is also exploring the "defects" of entering the automotive industry. The person in charge of Microsoft’s automotive division said: “Whether Microsoft can become the preferred brand for automotive companies depends not entirely on technology, but also on whether Microsoft can adapt to the culture of automotive companies. In the automotive industry, the most important is the manufacturer’s brand. Rather than the equipment provider's brand."

For this reason, the "big boss" of the software industry is trying to be more modest in the automotive field. A technical person in charge of Microsoft said: "Don't mention who dominates, and nobody in the auto industry has a dominant position."