Industrial group Bosch is entering the consumer mobility sector with the launch of a connected scooter sharing service in Berlin.
Coup is the name of a new connected scooter sharing service launched in Berlin by industrial group Bosch, in partnership with BCG Digital Ventures, the corporate venturing subsidiary of the Boston Consulting Group. “We have jointly developed Coup based on the MVP principle (minimum viable product). We are now quickly entering the market with a basic version to ‘test and learn’ together with our users in order to further refine our service,” says Mat Schubert, responsible for the Mobility Services project at Bosch and CEO of Coup Mobility GmbH. “In the near future, we will see which urban areas have the highest demand. On this basis, we will then gradually expand our service.”
The launch of the service is Bosch’s first consumer-oriented concessions business within the mobility services sector. “Coup wants to help overcome the urban mobility challenge,” said Dr. Markus Heyn, member of the Bosch board of management responsible for the project. “Mobility requirements and demands are changing. Bosch wants to shape this change with their own mobility and service solutions.”
The connected scooter sharing service works similarly to bicycle and electric car sharing schemes that have spread across European cities. To use one of the 200 connected electric scooters, drivers will be charged a flat-rate of €3 for 30 minutes or €20 for the whole day. Because the vehicles have a maximum speed of 45 km/h, any car or motorcycle driving license holder over 21 can use them. Users can check availability, book and pay for the connected scooter sharing service via a mobile application. Opening the helmet box is also controlled by the smartphone application, which is connected to the scooter via bluetooth. After reaching their destination, drivers can simply drop off the scooter anywhere in the city center and Coup will handle the charging. The first 200 connected scooters will be available in the Berlin neighborhoods of Mitte, Prenzlauer Berg, Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg.
The scooters are produced by Asian electric scooter manufacturer Gogoro.
Smartening up large cities
Besides Coup, Bosch is also working on other solutions to alleviate some of the challenges faced by large cities, including traffic jams and parking space shortage. Bosch is indeed working on solutions for connected parking management, cloud-based fleet management, and app-based mobility assistants supporting the use of different transport types.
Mobility Solutions, with expertise in automation, electrification and connectivity, is Bosch Group’s largest business unit, generating sales of €41.7 billion in 2015, or 59 percent of total group sales.
IIoT News Recap: Sigfox partners with Unabiz on Taiwan-based global IoT testbed; NTIA to create multi-stakeholder process to fight cybersecurity risks; IoT security startup CyberX raises $9 million; Global network analyzer market to benefit from 5G
Testbed: Sigfox partners with Unabiz on Taiwan-based global IoT testbed
In order to help Taiwan become “the Silicon Valley of Asia”, France-based IoT operator Sigfox has joined forces with Taiwanese IoT operator Unabiz on the creation of a global IoT testbed in Taiwan. “Sigfox is not only one of the best ambassadors of La French Tech spirit, it is also a large contributor to the entrepreneurship ecosystem in France through its European IoT Innovation Hub: the IoT Valley,” said Benoit Guidée, director of the French Office in Taipei. “By bridging the IoT Valley with Taiwan design and manufacturing capabilities, I am convinced that France and Taiwan have a great opportunity to shape together the future of the IoT in the world. France is thus inviting Taiwan to use Sigfox as a gateway into a global market and, by doing so, simplifying the integration and accelerating the go-to-market strategy.” UnaBiz will lead the network roll-out in Taiwan, which is expected to have nationwide coverage in early 2018.
IoT security: NTIA to create multi-stakeholder process to fight cybersecurity risks
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is planning to launch a new multi-stakeholder process to promote transparency in how patches or upgrades to IoT devices and applications are deployed. “Potential outcomes could include a set of common, shared terms or definitions that could be used to standardize descriptions of security upgradability or a set of tools to better communicate security upgradability,” the NTIA said.
Startup: IoT security startup CyberX raises $9 million
Israel-based cybersecurity startup CyberX has raised $9 million Series A financing, in a round led by Flint Capital. Former investors Glilot Capital Partners, Shaul Shani’s Swarth Group, Leon Recanati GlenRock, and Gigi Levy-Weiss, together with newcomer ff Venture Capital, also participated in the round, GeekTime reports.
Today’s forecast: Global network analyzer market to benefit from 5G
The global market for network analyzers will grow at a CAGR of over 5 percent between 2016 and 2020, driven by increasing data traffic across the globe, Technavio predicts. The onset of 5G is expected to have a positive effect on the market going forward. “The emergence of 5G networks is an upcoming trend in the market currently. This development is brought about by the increase in the number of mobile users, loads on mobile networks, as well as the emergence of IoT. These networks enable the use of unused frequency bands, such as the V band, to transport large amounts of data,” said Anju Ajaykumar, lead analyst Heavy Industry at Technavio Research.
