The future of "pay as you drive" - BMW Group Forschung und Technik and BMW Financial Services reveal the future of in-car payments at Cartes 2006

Munich. Picture this: you're driving along in your car listening to the radio
when suddenly they play a favourite song you haven't heard for ages. You press
a button, your car recognises the song, connects you to an online music store
and lets you buy the track instantly by payment card.

What may seem a pipe dream today is already reality in a research vehicle that
is part of a joint project between the BMW Group research division BMW
Forschung und Technik GmbH and BMW Financial Services. A BMW 530i and a
prototype payment card developed jointly with Visa will be presented at the
Visa stand at this year's Cartes 2006. The world's biggest trade fair for smart
cards and identification technology takes place in Paris from 7-9 November.

"With this technology carrier we firstly want to highlight further payment card
applications and new payment scenarios within vehicles, and secondly
demonstrate possibilities for ensuring the safety and mobility of personal data
in the car," explains Professor Raymond Freymann, Managing Director of BMW
Forschung und Technik GmbH, the group's research and development arm. Premium
automobiles today are already equipped with state-of-the-art telematics and
infotainment technology, which is leading to an increasing use of personal data
ranging from addresses all the way to individual user rights.

"It is the aim of BMW Financial Services to support the BMW Group and BMW
customers through innovative financial products. This project shows that the
BMW Payment Card has the potential to be much more than just a means of
payment. The secure and unambiguous identification of the driver combined with
a direct payment function could be the basis for numerous new business models
offering the driver immediate added value," says Georg Bauer, head of the BMW
Group's Financial Services division.

The research vehicle at the Cartes show features a card reader in the centre
console of the cockpit. This is how the future might look: you log onto your
computer at home using your BMW Visa Payment Card and go to your personal
website at http://www.meinbmw.de, where you can preconfigure a variety of
services for your car or even compile a playlist of music tracks for your
holiday journey.

As soon as the driver inserts the Visa card issued by BMW Financial Services
into the card reader, he is securely identified by the chip on the payment
card, and his personal car configurations and playlist are activated. All this
is supported by card technology devised by Giesecke & Devrient, as well as the
AudioID technology developed by m2any GmbH. Besides, if you hear a song you
like on the radio, all you have to do is press a button: the car recognises it,
starts downloading it and then quickly and conveniently deals with the payment.

Similarly, with regard to lists of navigation destinations and addresses,
personal music playlists or podcast subscriptions, you would not be restricted
to one car but could safely take your profile along with you into another
vehicle - as long as it features the appropriate technology.

Further information at:
http://www.bmw-financialservices.com
http://www.cartes.com

BMW Forschung und Technik GmbH in Munich is a 100% subsidiary of BMW AG with
branches in Palo Alto (USA), Tokyo (Japan) and Sophia Antipolis (France). The
limited liability company is a separate legal entity and has since 2003 been
responsible for BMW Group's research fields: VehicleTechnology, CleanEnergy
(hydrogen technology), EfficientDynamics (intelligent energy management and
alternative drives), ConnectedDrive (driver assistance systems and active
safety) and ITDrive (on-board IT and communications technology).

The BMW Group's Financial Services segment offers financing for cars and
motorcycles as well as capital investment products. With its innovative
products and services, it plays a key role in gaining and retaining customers
in the BMW Group's automotive business. Business volume for 2005 was over 40
billion euros and the number of finance and credit agreements totalled more
than 2 million. Pre-tax profit came to 605 million euros.