In an unprecedented move for the auto industry, Ford is giving the system underpinning its Sync AppLink to any automaker who wants it, at no cost and with no restrictions on what they do with it. That would help automakers quickly and easily advance their infotainment systems, bring countless new developers into the automotive sector and provide consumers with more apps and options.
Ford’s motives aren’t entirely altruistic. It wants to dominate the emerging infotainment space by leveraging the success of AppLink and Sync, much like Google used Android in the smartphone sector.
“We want to create the highest-volume architecture in the industry,” Doug VanDagens, Ford’s director of connected services, told Wired. “The ease at which [developers] can develop is important to them, and we believe we’re leading in tools and implementation.”
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