EARN MONEY WHEN YOU MOVE OUT OF A PARKING SPOT – CONTINENTAL MAKES SHARING VEHICLE DATA EASY
>> Everyone sends data, everyone receives data – the blockchain platform by Continental and HPE enables smooth exchange of vehicle-acquired data on an equal footing
>> The “Earn as you ride” demonstrator at Continental’s IAA booth uses On-Street Parking to show how drivers are rewarded for their data and how everyone benefits
>> “Earn as you ride” enables volume of data in the systems of automobile manufacturers to be increased, removing a critical obstacle to swarm intelligence services
Frankfurt, Germany. The technology company Continental will use the example of “Connected Parking” at the IAA to demonstrate how the future will see drivers benefit from the transfer of data collected by their vehicles in road traffic. The basis for this is the blockchain-based data-monetization platform. The platform was developed as part of a strategic partnership between Continental and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and is based on Crossbar.io technology. “Earn as you ride” enables vehicle manufacturers to reward their customers with virtual coins for sharing information. The aim of this incentive is to give manufacturers easier and legally compliant access to service-relevant customer data. They can use this data to better understand their customers’ needs and optimize their services for them. However, they may also sell it to other service providers on the data trading platform. In this way, all the market participants receive enough data to offer seamless digital services.
“We’ll be using our parking data service to show exactly how our blockchain-based data trading platform can create real added value for drivers and mobility in cities,” says Helmut Matschi, Member of the Executive Board of Continental and Head of the Interior Division. “We fully integrate the driver into the data exchange, creating transparency and higher data availability for everyone involved.”
Enabling global data availability
Data shape the mobility of the future. The sensors installed in connected vehicles collect huge amounts of valuable data in realtime during trips – and this has a great deal of potential, not only for vehicle manufacturers and mobility-related services, but also for the infrastructure planning of connected cities. To exploit this potential and enable a broad and dense network of data availability, Continental, HPE and the technology provider Crossbar.io have developed a blockchain-based data trading platform, which vehicle manufacturers and companies from other industries can use to share data easily, securely and efficiently. “Vehicle data is priceless, but its value can only be realized if we share it,” says Volkhard Bregulla, Head of the Manufacturing, Automotive and IoT division at HPE. “Our platform removes obstacles that used to hinder data exchange. Data sovereignty, efficiency and monetary incentives are the keys here. The platform will create a secure and open data ecosystem that generates innovation and growth.” Platform participants can enrich their own digital service offerings and also earn money by selling their data. “From a global perspective, one supplier alone simply cannot acquire the required coverage and density of data,” explains Jürgen Schweiger, Head of Map & Parking at Continental’s Intelligent Transportation Systems business segment. “So to enhance the quality of specific services, data providers must be able to supplement their own offers with data from other providers – easily and in realtime where possible. Continental and HPE’s platform makes this data sharing possible.”
The decentralized platform approach based on blockchain technology ensures transparency, security and efficiency: All the participants in the distributed ecosystem retain sovereignty over their data and decide for themselves which data they want to share. No data is stored on a central server. The price for a data package is determined by the individual provider. When a transaction has been completed, the data is transferred from backend to backend without intermediate steps – and it’s also available in real time. This solution is creating a great deal of interest, and not only from automobile manufacturers – telecommunications companies, electronics suppliers, city authorities and even the agricultural community are all impressed by the potential of the platform – because it can also handle other kinds of data efficiently.
Drivers share data, earn virtual coins and get improved services
The “Earn as you ride” principle enables the volume of data in the backend systems of automobile manufacturers to be increased, boosting data trading and swarm intelligence. Drivers earns credits on the road with the data they generate themselves. The data can only be passed on to third parties if the driver gives his prior consent, to improve a parking service, for instance. Drivers can also choose the specific data they want to share, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The virtual coins collected in this way can then be redeemed by the driver for rewards. The automobile manufacturer decides exactly how data sharing is to be rewarded.
CONTINENTAL AND HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE LAUNCH BLOCKCHAIN-BASED DATA MONETIZATION PLATFORM
>> New platform fuels sharing of vehicle data to improve driver safety, convenience, by providing unprecedented level of data sovereignty
Barcelona, Spain. The technology company Continental and Hewlett Packard Enterprise announced a new platform, expected to be available in 2019, for sharing vehicle data to enable new digital services that improve driver safety and convenience. At the same time the platform will help car manufacturers monetize their data and differentiate their brands. Based on blockchain technology, the platform provides data sovereignty, security, transparency, and efficiency to overcome the barriers of sharing vehicle data.
Enterprises across different industries have understood that they need to find ways to break down data silos and enable multiple parties to work together to extract the full value from their data. In the case of connected and autonomous vehicles, data sharing across automotive brands is key to providing driver-assistance services that help drivers avoid traffic hazards and find the most convenient, practical and efficient travel routes – for example real-time traffic warnings and locating available parking.
Decentralized architecture empowers market participants and creates trust for data sharing
Several existing digital ecosystems enable data sharing based on a middleman model, where platform owners centrally coordinate the data flows and monetization. Applying a complimentary approach, HPE and Continental’s platform leverages a decentralized architecture based on blockchain technologies. Participants, such ascar manufacturers, continue storing the data in their own data centers and only share specific data sets upon purchase directly with the buyer. This approach gives data sovereignty to all participants in the ecosystem, while at the same time providing a highly efficient and secure procedure for monetizing vehicle data.
“Sharing vehicle data across vendors can solve some of the toughest traffic problems and improve driver experience by leveraging the power of swarm intelligence,” said Phil Davis, President Hybrid IT, Chief Sales Officer, HPE. “Together with Continental, we provide the key to unlock the value of this data treasure, not by taking control of the data ourselves, but by giving control to the drivers and car manufacturers.”
The data-monetization platform will enable car manufacturers and other partners to trade data with each other – either to improve digital services for their customers or to monetize vehicle data. However, trading is only feasible upon a driver’s consent. Therefore, the platform will integrate a consent management system and provide an easy to use opt-in and opt-out system for drivers. HPE and Continental take data privacy seriously to be compliant with GDPR and data protection regulations in other countries.
HPE and Continental have already received overwhelmingly positive feedback on the new platform from car manufacturers. “We are sure that our platform cuts the Gordian knot of data sharing and data privacy,” said Helmut Matschi, Member of the Executive Board, Interior Division, Continental AG. “We invite car manufacturers globally to join our platform and collaboratively shape this quickly growing ecosystem.”
As part of a strategic partnership between HPE and Continental, the new platform was jointly designed by HPE Pointnext and Continental’s Interior division and is expected to be available in 2019. HPE and Continental will provide additional services to facilitate data trading and the integration of vehicle data into car manufacturers’ backend systems and services. The platform’s interface capability will enable multiple ecosystems – both centralized or decentralized – to interconnect and leverage new ways of data monetization. Furthermore, the platform is compliant with the VDA NEVADA Share & Secure concept which was developed by the German automotive industry to govern the secure transmission and transfer of vehicle generated data to third parties.
