Aeris aims at OnStar’s market

Machine-to-machine wireless network operator Aeris Communications Inc. said it recently enhanced its data services to support asset tracking, automotive telematics and stolen vehicle recovery using CDMA and GSM networks nationwide-a move that puts the company in the same class as telematics veteran OnStar.
In fact, Aeris’ offerings are just like OnStar’s-but better, says Aeris’ President and Chief Executive Dick Gossen. Aeris is poised to serve the auto-manufacturer market OnStar is walking away from, said Gossen.
OnStar has vowed to limit OnStar services to GM vehicles after 2008, which could leave other carmakers shopping around for a new vendor capable of filling the auto-networking services void.
Gossen said Aeris’ AerFrame network platform fits the bill. Currently, the company’s AerFrame network serves more than 1 million M2M devices. The service runs over other carriers’ networks.
“Leveraging our centralized, proprietary switching infrastructure, fiber-backhauled directly from the more than 600 switching centers of our collective carrier partners, we have gone far beyond the [mobile virtual network operator] business model which is based on simply repacking and re-branding conventional carrier services,” explained Gossen.
The bottom line for users, according to Gossen, is that Aeris’ network services are more reliable and robust as compared with OnStar’s services.
Gossen said Aeris is talking to most of the world’s auto manufacturers and expects to begin racking up contracts in 2007.