Skip to main content

Verizon launches Auto Share platform

Seeing an opportunity to streamline the way people rent, borrow and use vehicles, Verizon has announced a new car-sharing platform that allows drivers to rent vehicles by scanning a QR barcode with their mobile device. The announcement, made yesterday at the World Congress, promised that the wireless platform will be available by the end of the year.
September 8, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
Michael Burgess of Verizon with the Auto Share application
Seeing an opportunity to streamline the way people rent, borrow and use vehicles, 1984 Verizon has announced a new car-sharing platform that allows drivers to rent vehicles by scanning a QR barcode with their mobile device. The announcement, made yesterday at the World Congress, promised that the wireless platform will be available by the end of the year.

According to Michael Burgess, a telematics representative for the company, Verizon Auto Share is just the first in a long line of possible share applications. Bicycles, construction equipment and government vehicles are just some items that Burgess says are shareable and need to be tracked and the renting process streamlined.

Verizon’s car-sharing mobile app is available on iOS, Android and Windows and allows drivers to search nearby cars available for sharing. The driver then has to scan a QR code on the vehicle’s windshield and authorise payment information. A key fob screen with lock/unlock, horn, trunk access and ignition functionality is then accessible.

No interaction is required with on-site attendants, and transactions over the Verizon wireless network are secured by Verizon Managed Security Services and Identity Verification.

The app can also be used for fleet management, helping organisations centralise location, diagnostic, usage and lifecycle information on a single mobile platform. Additional features such as in-car WiFi and fuel purchasing options will also be available.

Several cars connected to the Auto Share platform are being demoed during the show on Belle Isle. In addition, Burgess said that the company is in the process of setting up pilot programmes to field test the solution with rental car companies, dealerships and other organisations that rent or share vehicles.


Booth: 814
%$Linker: 2 Asset <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 4 47437 0 oLinkAsset <span class="mouselink">www.verizon.com </span> Verizon Website true /EasySiteWeb/GatewayLink.aspx?alId=47437 false false%>

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • JAI traffic imaging systems for all seasons
    October 28, 2014
    The JAI range of camera sub-systems, camera components and LED flashes is suitable for most ITS applications requiring 24-hour operation, including tolling, speed control and access control.
  • Maven expands peer-to-peer car-share service
    October 30, 2018
    General Motors’ subsidiary Maven is expanding its peer-to-peer car-share option to more US cities. The service – which sees owners renting out their vehicles - is currently available in four urban areas: Ann Arbor, Chicago, Denver and Detroit. But GM says it will now be rolled out in Baltimore, Boston, Jersey City, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington, DC by the end of the year. Owners can rent out their GM car, so long as it is registered in 2015 or later, with Maven taking 40% of each rental. Despi
  • Borum line marking at Intertraffic
    February 6, 2014
    The Borum stand at Intertraffic Amsterdam 2014 promises to be a busy place. The company says Borum partners from all over the world will be there to provide professional advice on line marking equipment. And the company will be unveiling some innovations for mounting on all of its machines, including a bead alarm (a sensor mounted on the bead gun to detect a stop of bead flow and provide an alarm) and an air dryer for a bead tank which Borum says is especially useful in areas with a high level of humidity.
  • International debut for Metric’s VivoPark ANPR
    February 6, 2014
    Metric Group predicts that 2014 will go down in its long history as ‘the year of innovation.’ The company is bringing to the market several innovations, not only to current concepts, but new ones as well. Visitors to Intertraffic Amsterdam 2014 will have an opportunity of seeing these Metric innovations, across the parking industry from local government to retail and leisure, at first hand.