Is Apple’s CarPlay Aiding GM Sales?
General Motors Co.’s efforts to distribute Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s in-car software faster than its competitors may be paying off for the Detroit auto maker, some dealers say, according to WSJ
CarPlay, Apple’s software that displays an iPhone’s screen on a car dashboard and gives access to applications, including Apple’s mapping application, became available on 27 GM models this fall, far more than any other auto company.
Some auto makers, including Honda Motor Co. and Volkswagen AG, offer the software on a few models, and virtually every car company plans to introduce it and competing software for Alphabet Inc.’s Android operating system in coming years.
“We’ve had people coming in because they’ve heard about it, and once they see it, they really do like it because it mirrors the look and feel of the devices they use,” said Chris Hemmersmeier, chief executive of a chain of Jerry Seiner Dealerships in Salt Lake City, Utah. “It’s helping to close the deal once they see it.”
GM’s U.S. sales surged in October and November, buoyed by a strong market and demand for sport-utility vehicles. But it is hard to pinpoint a direct effect caused by CarPlay.
Gavin McGrath, the general manager of Pat McGrath Chevyland in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has been advertising CarPlay availability and it has drawn in customers.
Mr. McGrath and Mr. Hemmersmeier said the software will affect purchases of vehicles that have built-in navigation systems. Mr. McGrath said he is already considering a change in ordering vehicles with the systems from the manufacturer. WSJ Report
Samsung set to unseat IBM in US patent wars
According to Other news report, Samsung is on track to unseat International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) as the number one company when it comes to winning U.S. utility patents, according to CNBC
International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) has held the top spot for more than 22 years, but unless it is granted a slew of patents between now and the end of the year - which experts say is extremely unlikely - Samsung will claim the top spot. The Korean company has trailed IBM in the number two position for almost a decade.
That’s according to new data compiled by data journalism site Sqoop, which tracks public records from the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. (USPTO typically releases its final tallies in the spring).
So far this year, the two companies have been neck and neck: Samsung has been granted 7,679 patents and applied for a further 4,443. The comparable figures for IBM are 7,005 and 4,126, respectively.
Patenting is one of several key barometers of innovation, and an important way companies protect themselves from litigation. Samsung’s bruising patent battle with Apple - which forced the company to hand over $548 million to its greatest smartphone rival - may partially explain its motivation for building up its own war chest, say experts. CNBC added
“The most likely explanation is having been the target in the Apple suit and other suits by U.S companies, they want tools of their own to fight back or at least level the playing field,” said Mark Lemley, professor of law at Stanford Law School and director of the Stanford Program in law, science and technology.
The Korean company’s numbers are up markedly over last year - it has already won 2,743 more patents for invention this year contrast with 2014, and could pick up a few more over the next two weeks.
That said, Samsung is now in so many businesses in the U.S. - from smartphones to dishwashers - a closer examination of the types of patents is necessary to understand the degree to which they target mobile and can be seen as a reaction to the smartphone wars. CNBC Report