Turkcell, Turkey’s leading telecommunications and technology company, announced Turkey’s first Connected Car Platform. The platform connects the car and its driver to mobile internet and essential location-based services, enriching the driving experience.
Turkcell’s Connected Car Platform, which will be available in select Subaru and Volvo models in Turkey as of August 1st, offers an infotainment screen that works online. The driver can connect to vital information and entertainment under three categories: Navigation, Internet, Roadside Assistance.
Through this menu, Turkcell Connected Car platform allows the driver to:
- Track traffic in real time and optimize the route.
- Locate and get directions to parking lots, pharmacies and gas stations.
- Get real time financial updates and locate nearby ATMs of partnering banks. Garanti Bank of Turkey is the first partner of the platform.
- Share the car’s own location information with friends, colleagues and roadside assistance.
- Stay connected to social network platforms while ensuring safety in traffic. Social media access shuts down automatically when the driving speed exceeds 10 km/hr.
- Enjoy music online with Turkcell’s live music streaming service Fizy which includes 3 million song alternatives.
Speaking at the press conference where the Platform was introduced, Selen Kocabas, Turkcell’s Chief Corporate Business Officer underlined Turkcell’s leading role in M2M technologies.
“Turkcell launched the first M2M SIM card in Turkey in 2011. Today, 2 out of every 3 M2M SIM cards in Turkey are issued by Turkcell. We were the first company to open M2M call center. We are excited to add another first to our M2M offerings with Turkcell’s Connected Car Platform that integrates drivers into the car ecosystem”, said Kocabas.
Yigit Kulabas, Turkcell’s Chief Corporate Marketing Officer, emphasized the need for localized M2M products in Turkey.
“With its Connected Car Platform, Turkcell once again proves its global perspective in making technological solutions available to its customers. This product also fills an important void in the Turkish market – not many connected car solutions serve local needs. With this Platform, Turkcell localizes the essential information on internet for drivers through a user-friendly interface offering great customer experience.”
As Turkey’s leading M2M solutions provider, Turkcell already has a strong presence in the smart vehicle market. Turkcell’s tracking products are used in more than 500 thousand, mostly commercial, vehicles, making Turkcell the top operator in Europe in vehicle tracking in one country. Through route and fuel optimization, Turkcell helped Turkish economy save 500 Million USD in 2013. Connected Car Platform is Turkcell’s first M2M solution that is geared primarily towards passenger cars.