The new BMW Online and BMW Live portal: even more comfort and individuality due to browser apps which can be personalised.

Munich. Locally based internet services make orientation easier for BMW ConnectedDrive customers when travelling - new applications can be activated at the press of a button in the iDrive menu - extension can also be used in vehicles which are already registered - unique flexibility and future viability.

With extensive additions to the BMW Online range of services, BMW continues to advance its position as a worldwide leader in the field of internet-based services in the automobile. As of September 2011, BMW ConnectedDrive customers who use BMW Online in their automobile can activate new applications which provide additional comfort when travelling in particular due to the specific selection and presentation of information. New features are access to the user-generated local reviews site Qype, the search function for Deutsche Post service facilities, the service Wiki Local and a registration number search function. The information is transferred to the automobile via an internet connection by means of an online portal developed and provided by BMW and shown on the Control Display of the operating system iDrive. The extended range of services is not only available to all future BMW ConnectedDrive customers but also a large number of existing ones - without incurring additional costs.

For years, BMW has been a pioneer in the intelligent networking of the driver, the automobile and the surrounding environment. This applied long before 2008 when BMW ConnectedDrive first enabled unlimited use of the internet inside the vehicle - an automobile first. As early as 2001, BMW was the first manufacturer in the world to launch an internet-based portal for use inside the vehicle. Since then BMW Online has provided selected features optimised on the BMW ConnectedDrive platform for use in the automobile such as hotel, restaurant, pharmacy cash machine search, current news, weather information, travel guide and BMW Routes, country and parking information, extensive office functions including e-mail handling and numerous Google services.

Personalisation at the press of a button: new applications for use with BMW Online and BMW Live.

A SIM card installed in the vehicle is used to establish the required online connection. In the BMW 1 Series, selected content can alternatively be transmitted into the automobile via an internet connection established using the customer's mobile phone. The option BMW Live is available for the new BMW 1 Series for this purpose. BMW Live includes free news via RSS feeds, weather information and the services Google Local Search, Google Panoramio and Google Street View. The new applications, available from September 2011, are available for both BMW Online and BMW Live.

The BMW Online and BMW Live services are controlled via the operating system iDrive. They are shown on the Control Display in standardised form in the familiar iDrive menu structure. This also includes the personalisation of new applications in the vehicle. Browser apps newly available on the BMW Online and BMW Live portal can be added using the application menu in a few steps. In this way, browser apps provided by BMW are handled in much the same way as applications on a smartphone. The personalised configuration enables a selection of functions tailored precisely to individual customer preferences.

Networked with the surroundings: locally based information sent directly to the automobile.

The current extension of the range includes four internet-based applications. By accessing the user-generated local reviews site Qype, the BMW driver is provided with user-generated information on restaurants, hotels, shops and public facilities which is now sent directly to the automobile. As soon as the application is started under the menu item "Qype", all points for which reviews are available are displayed, depending on the region and category selected. This means a driver can obtain recommendations for a museum or bar visit while still on the way to his travel destination. The application Deutsche Post provides the driver with the addresses of branches, sales outlets, letter boxes, packing stations and cash machines of the Cash Group which are located in the proximity of the vehicle.

Information from the service Wiki Local can also be accessed while on the road. With this application, entries in the online encyclopaedia Wikipedia linked to geodata are transmitted to the vehicle. The extended range of BMW Online features is rounded off with the registration number search function. The respective city or district name is displayed when a number plate abbreviation is entered, any entry accessed using the new browser app can be fed directly into the navigation system as a destination. What is more, the intelligent networking between driver, vehicle and the environment also offers the option to use the telephone number included in an entry to make a phone call.

New applications on the BMW Online and BMW Live portal: intuitive to use and with lots of future potential.

Due to the clear menu structure and intuitive usability of the iDrive system, both handling and use of the applications is very straightforward. The data supplied by the various service providers is optimised in the BMW Online and BMW Live portal for the vehicle's Control Display. What is more, the driver can select information - for example a restaurant review, the description of a tourist sight or the address of a cash machine - and then have it read aloud by means of the BMW text-to-speech function.

The browser display of online information developed for BMW Online and BMW Live and the provision of applications via the BMW Online and BMW Live portal enables unique flexibility and future viability of BMW internet-based services. As with the applications available for smartphones, the range of applications on the BMW Online and BMW Live portal can be continuously expanded. So BMW ConnectedDrive customers are not just permanently connected to their environment now, they will be in direct contact with the very latest developments in the field of automobile infotainment in the future, too. The new apps from the BMW Online and BMW Live portal are not only available for future BMW ConnectedDrive customers. Depending on model and fittings, they can be used in all vehicles built from August 2008 (BMW 7 Series with Professional navigation system and mobile phone preparation) or from November 2008 (other models with Professional navigation system and mobile phone preparation, and from September 2009 (models with Business navigation system and mobile phone preparation).