In-Car Internet Standard by 2013

The advancements in infotainment systems made in the automotive sector are pushing the industry towards an integration of Internet services for use in vehicles within the next three years. According to specialists and big names of the industry taking part at the Automobilwoche Congress in Berlin, in-car Internet will become a common standard feature on the vehicles sold in 2013.

According to T-Systems automotive specialist, the rise of the Internet to be used in cars is more than possible, given the fact that the technologies required are all here. What's more important is that Internet will become an important component of car-to-car communication systems currently under development in the world.

This outcome has already sparked some controversies in the US, where the federal government already rushed to announce plans for guidelines to be created for automakers. The guidelines are intended to help carmakers reduce the risks they make drivers face by adding technologies which, for instance, allow one's Facebook page to be updated from the car.

Overall however, the benefits of Internet use in cars far outweighs the disadvantages. Despite the fear American feel for distraction (fear otherwise justified by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration report on distracted driving), the main use of Internet in vehicles will not be Facebook, but systems which would make the life of the driver both easier and safer.

What's important, the industry agrees, is that the universal standards for the technology be developed by the carmakers themselves, and not by third party developers and companies.