Visa has partnered with Accenture and Pizza Hut on a proof-of-concept web-connected car to highlight the opportunities of ”internet of things”-based commerce.
The car, revealed at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week integrates Visa Checkout - Visa’s online payment service – with Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and Beacon technology. It was demonstrated in three use cases; picking up a food order, a petrol station, and paying for parking.
As part of the connected trial, the Pizza Hut has created an app for the car which opens when in range of a restaurant, providing in-car access to menus, delivery and pick-up options.
The internet of things is the idea that networks of physical everyday objects can be embedded with electronics and sensors to connect to the internet to enhance people’s experiences. These can be used by companies to target marketing and offer services to people when they are in close proximity of, for example, a restaurant.
The user will be able to place an order verbally, the car will be tracked, and food will be delivered to the customer once they reach the Pizza Hut car park.
The partners expect to test the connected car commerce experience in Northern California, over a three-month period, starting this spring.
Bill Gajda, senior vice president of innovation and strategic partnerships at Visa Inc, said: “By 2020 it is estimated that more than 250 million vehicles worldwide will include some form of embedded connectivity. As the number of connected cars on the road increases, so does our ability to bring secure online commerce to consumers everywhere. We initially focused on a specific use case - ordering a meal on your way home - but we envision a world where consumers can seamlessly make many of their everyday purchases from the car.”
