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MWC: Ford smartens its cars with Waze

Lauren Kate Rawlins
By Lauren Kate Rawlins, ITWeb digital and innovation contributor.
Barcelona, 01 Mar 2018
The Waze app in Ford cars.
The Waze app in Ford cars.

Smart interactive screens in cars have become commonplace, helping drivers adjust in-car settings as well as communicate hands-free.

Ford Motors' SYNC 3 AppLink platform connects drivers' smartphones to the in-car screens and lets drivers interact with their cars through voice and touch.

The company has now revealed its latest partnership with Google's Waze mapping app.

This was announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Waze is a crowd-sourced navigation app, with millions of active users globally, that lets users mark accidents and other reasons for slow-moving traffic in real-time. The app will then reroute other users to avoid congestion.

Ford says Waze will be made available in April to all Ford owners that have the SYNC 3 system. At first, it will only be available to iOS users.

The collaboration means Apple iPhone owners will be able to project Waze from their smartphone to the big screen in their car.

"We know that people enjoy a range of navigation apps to help them reach their destination safely and more efficiently, and have worked closely with partners to make this happen," says Don Butler, Ford executive director, connected vehicle and services.

"With the SYNC 3 AppLink platform, drivers can access their favourite apps safely and seamlessly while keeping their eyes on the road and their hands on the wheel."

Ford already offers mobile navigation app Sygic on the AppLink platform, and the SYNC 3 Navigation System with FordPass Live Traffic.

"Waze works as a personal heads-up from 100 million of your friends on the road - and now that will include the many Ford drivers who will be able to safely access our app while on the move through the car display," says Jens Baron, Waze product lead, in-car applications.

"Waze is more than just red lines on the map - it reflects a huge community of drivers on the go, outsmarting traffic together all around the world."

The motoring company also this week announced a partnership with podcasting app Acast.

Acast will integrate with the SYNC 3 system and intelligently offer drivers recommendations for podcasts that will fit the commute length of the current journey.

Acast was one of the winners of Ford's 2017 "Make it Driveable" Paris AppLink Challenge, a start-up-focused event to help companies develop ideas that make journeys better.

Other apps coming to the AppLink system this year include: BPme, an app that finds BP petrol stations and pays for fuel; Radioplayer, a radio and podcast streaming app; and Cisco WebEx, which lets drivers participate in meetings while driving.

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