General Motors has committed to offering 4G LTE wireless service in cars through its OnStar service.
AT&T will actually offer the mobile Wi-Fi connection for $5 a day and the companies would share the revenue. The service is to begin next month.
It’s a gamble, reports the Wall Street Journal, since many consumers use a different carrier to connect their smartphones or iPads in the vehicle already and skeptics question why drivers would pay for an additional wireless service.
Gartner Group Analyst Thilo Koslowski tells WSJ that time will tell what “sticks” with consumers, meaning the in-car experience “has to be better, faster and more robust. If that is not strong enough, prices will have to drop.”
GM announced in January the mobile 4G LTE connection would be available in most of its lineup beginning this summer, we reported at the time. Initially arriving on the Chevrolet Corvette, Impala and Volt passenger cars, along with the Silverado pickup truck, the company predicts the 4G LTE connection will be available in 90% of its lineup within two years. The connection will enable passengers to watch movies, play games, catch up on email or surf the Internet when traveling.
