ATX Launches Telematics-Based vRM Diagnostics in Europe - "Hey Mister Your Engine Needs Work...We Are Waiting"

New vRM (vehicle relationship management) program delivers benefits to OEM, dealer, driver

DUSSELDORF, Germany, Oct. 28 -- ATX, the world's leading provider of telematics business solutions to the automotive industry, today announced the launch of its vRM (vehicle relationship management) diagnostics program. The BMW Group TELESERVICE program uses the wireless handset to access the telematics technology in all BMW 5 and 7 Series models and thereby remotely receives engine performance data and error codes from in-vehicle computers to better diagnose service needs before the vehicle enters the service bay.

The vRM program, which is provided at no charge to vehicle owners and is designed primarily to leverage telematics technology for automotive business solutions, is currently limited to Germany and the United States.

"The program is a win-win-win proposition to vehicle owners, manufacturers and retail centers," noted Dieter Rupp, ATX managing director. "By using real-time, vehicle service-specific data, the service center can more efficiently plan for the next service appointment. For the vehicle owner, they receive a timely notice of service need, avoiding the sudden shock of unexpected repairs and costs. The automaker benefits from greater real-time knowledge of vehicle service needs and greater revenue from in-network service. This type of service keeps customers happy and keeps them coming back."

Providing service managers with data on a real-time basis is particularly helpful when unexpected service needs arise, requiring service technicians to extend the time a vehicle is in the shop because of the need to rearrange the workshop schedule.

Vehicle relationship management, or vRM, is a term coined by ATX and borrowed from the more familiar marketing process of customer relationship management, or CRM. The difference is that while CRM uses customer supplied data to customize service and build loyalty with a specific customer, vRM adds data supplied by the vehicle to the customer-provided data.

ATX foresees a future in which telematics increasingly includes services that provide direct business benefits to automobile manufacturers and retailers as well as more efficient, personalized, vehicle-centric services to vehicle owners.

About ATX: ATX is headquartered in Dallas-Fort Worth and Dusseldorf, Germany. ATX provides leading-edge telematics services, which integrates wireless connectivity, off-board computer processing, interactive speech recognition technology and real-time data generation from the vehicle. For vehicle owners, these services include automatic collision notification, location-based routing assistance and traffic reports, stolen vehicle recovery, remote diagnostics and other location-based information services. The company also pioneered vRM (vehicle relationship management), which aggregates real-time data from telematics-equipped vehicles to help automakers and their affiliated dealerships reduce costs, increase customer retention and loyalty, and generate revenue. For more information, visit www.atxna.com .