AMI-C Joins OSGi to Develop Common Interfaces for Motor Vehicle Communication Networks

  OSGi Forms Vehicle Expert Group to Tailor OSGi Specifications for Vehicle-
                            Specific Requirements

    SAN RAMON, Calif., Feb. 28 Open Services Gateway
Initiative (OSGi) today announced that the Automotive Multimedia Interface
Collaboration (AMI-C) organization has joined OSGi to help develop common
interfaces for motor vehicle communications networks.  OSGi and AMI-C will
work together to define and enhance open specifications that enable a variety
of devices to plug into automobiles and share information with other devices
and in-vehicle systems.

    OSGi is an independent, non-profit corporation
composed of 81 leading technology companies working to define and promote open
specifications for the delivery of multiple services over wide-area networks
to local networks and devices.  AMI-C is a worldwide
organization of motor vehicle manufacturers created to facilitate the
development, promotion and standardization of automotive multimedia interfaces
to in-vehicle communications networks.  Through close collaboration, OSGi and
AMI-C will expand the marketplace for the Internet-enabled car and ensure that
devices will work in any vehicle with an open interface designed to comply
with the OSGi and AMI-C specifications, regardless of the manufacturer.

    "We welcome the contribution that AMI-C will make in adapting the OSGi
specification to meet automotive requirements," said John Barr, president of
OSGi, and director, Architecture and Technology Strategy for Personal Area
Networks, Motorola.  "Representing an overwhelming majority of passenger car
and light vehicle production, AMI-C has created significant support from the
OEM and supplier community for unified vehicle multimedia specifications.
OSGi and AMI-C will work together to expand product markets by moving from a
single-vehicle, proprietary interface to a cross-vehicle, open interface."

    The OSGi specification makes it possible to access, download and use
services in a vehicle's mobile environment, creating an enormous potential for
car manufacturers and service providers to offer new value-added services to
drivers and passengers.  From applications such as remote door lock/unlock,
on-demand navigation and remote diagnostics to banking, entertainment and Web
browsing, OSGi enables the delivery of dynamic new services on demand.  With
the growing adoption of the OSGi platform in the residential market, the
automobile will become a natural extension of the home network.

    "Vehicle manufacturers often have complex and incompatible systems, which
prevent the use of common devices across different vehicle platforms," said
Matts Overfjord, director of outreach for AMI-C.  "The OSGi and AMI-C
specifications greatly simplify the design process by providing a single open
interface."

    At the same time that AMI-C has joined the organization, OSGi has formed a
Vehicle Expert Group to tailor and extend the OSGi specification to meet
vehicle-specific requirements.  The OSGi Vehicle Expert Group, which includes
representatives of AMI-C, will work to define standard application-programming
interfaces (APIs) to obtain the location of mobile gateways in automotive
environments and provide location information to device applications.

    "The Vehicle Expert Group offers a bridge between AMI-C and OSGi," said
Johan Vos, of ACUNIA and chairman of the OSGi Vehicle Expert Group.  "This is
the ideal forum for collaboration and open communication between auto
manufacturers and specification developers."