BMW Wants to Introduce Microtransactions in the Car Industry

The German-automakers, BMW has beenexperimentingwith a lot of tech-focused features for their cars. Recently, we saw the companycollaborate with Appleto become the first manufacturer to support Apple’s new “CarKey” feature that is to come withiOS 14this fall. Now, recent reports suggest that the company might introduce a form of micro-transactions in the car industry.

If you don’t know aboutmicrotransactions, it is a form of business in the gaming industry through whichgame developers charge extra money for specific features in a game that users have already bought. Gamers havestood against the practicefor quite a long time now. That is why recent game developerstend not to include microtransactionsin their upcoming titles.

Now, the idea of micro-transactions makes sense in the gaming industry. But, how can one car company start this practice? Well, according to apress releaseby BMW, the company might start a subscription-based model for features that already come with the car from the factory.

The German car giant states that they will integrate various hardware and software in their future cars from the factory itself. However, these sensors and hardware will remain turned off when you buy the car. Now,if you want to activate a feature, say adaptive cruise control, you have to pay BMW a subscription fee to turn it on. You even have to keep paying them for every month you use the feature.

According to BMW,this subscription-based business model will offer their customers to choose which BMW features they want and which feature they don’t want. So, a potential first-hand buyer will pay for a feature that he/she might need. However, when the car goes to a second owner in a few months or years, then they can choose which features they want to pay for and which features they won’t need.

When asked about the upcoming change, a BMW executive had this to say:“In the near future, we will not only be able to add more functions here, but we will also be able to add even more flexibility for our customers with temporary bookings so booking of options for three years, for one year, or even shorter periods of time, like a few months,”.

Beebom Staff

Bringing the latest in technology, gaming, and entertainment is our superhero team of staff writers. They have a keen eye for latest stories, happenings, and even memes for tech enthusiasts.

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