by Amy Antenora

CHICAGO — Telematics. it’s a word you may hear bandied about a lot these days, but what does it mean exactly? Telematics is defined as a source of measuring, sending, receiving and storing information via telecommunication devices. To put it in more visual terms, it’s the iPod you can dock in your new car, it’s the GPS device sitting on your dashboard, guiding your way to an unfamiliar destination or the EZ Pass allowing you to breeze through toll booths without stopping.

But according to Kathleen Schmatz, president and CEO of the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association, the opportunities and risks go way beyond that. Last fall, AAIA and IMC announced a plan to fund a study on telematics. Team IMC, a group of cyclists made up of employees from Interamerican Motor Corporation (IMC) and other industry partners, cycled from Los Angeles to Las Vegas to attend the 2007 AAPEX trade show, raising money to fund a study on telematics. Team IMC raised just over $50,000 for the study.

The telematics study, funded by IMC, was conducted Derek Kaufman, founder and president of C3 Network, on behalf of the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association. During a presentation yesterday at the Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium in Chicago, Schmatz gave GAAS attendees a slice of some of the study’s findings.

The ‘connected car’ of tomorrow can document how we use our cars and can provide traffic and road reports. It can help drivers be more environmentally conscious, by selecting routes and speeds that will help reduce fuel consumption. Biometric driver scans can alert a drowsy driver when they begin to lose focus on the road. It can help a motorist locate an open parking spot and even pay for parking.

The aftermarket’s agility to bring new products to market will serve well when it comes to tapping into telematics. However, there are some concerns, Schmatz noted. Most concerning of all is the critical role Right to Repair legislation could play in telematics. While some OEM’s may ‘open source’ their data, many AAIA predicts, will increasingly silo and encrypt their data, posing a challenge for the independent aftermarket.

A more technical look at the future of telematics will be presented at the upcoming Aftermarket eForum, which takes place July 14-16 in Chicago.