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You Might Rent Features & Options On Cars In the Future

cartechboy writes "These days, you go to a car dealership and you buy a car. If you want seat heaters, you might need to option for the cold weather package from the factory. Want the high-end stereo? You'll be likely be opting for some technology package which bundles in navigation. While some options are a la carte, most are bundled, and even when they are a la carte, they aren't cheap. What if in the future you could buy a car and unlock options later? Say the car came from the factory with heated seats, but you didn't pay for them. But later on, say in the middle of the freezing winter, you suddenly want them. What if you could simply pay a monthly fee during the winter months to have those heated seats work? Whether this model would benefit the consumer, the automakers, or both is yet to be seen. But automakers such as MINI are already talking about this type of a future. Is this the right road to be headed down, or are consumers going to just get screwed in the long run?"

7 of 437 comments (clear)

  1. All I Have To Say Is by rhook · · Score: 5, Insightful

    FUCK, THAT, SHIT!

    1. Re:All I Have To Say Is by memnock · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Customer, one month after purchase , "Hi, yeah, for some reason, my door won't unlock. Can you guys do a remote open for me? I'm late for work."

      Dealer: "Sorry, Mr. Smith, your door unlock feature was only available for an introductory month. Would you care to renew for the $99.99 / qtr lease at this point?"

    2. Re:All I Have To Say Is by AmiMoJo · · Score: 5, Insightful

      No, this is great! Lots of companies have tried this and someone always figures out a way to enable the extra options for free. I have a DSLR camera, an oscilloscope, a TV, a phone, sat nav and several other devices that have been hacked to enable extra features that the manufacturer wants to charge for.

      Now I'll be able to buy the base model and get the high spec version with a simple software hack!

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    3. Re:All I Have To Say Is by icebike · · Score: 5, Informative

      Yes, stupid Idea. Since I own the car, I own everything in the car, including anything I have to hack to make it work.

      I doubt there is legal precedent for this in the consumer market that would survive in court these days, unless they hung
      it on DMCA lockouts of some kind.

      There is legal precedent in the computer industry:

      My university owned a Control Data 3200 computer back in the day.
      They wanted to upgrade it to the next model up, which was a lot faster. They paid a huge price.
      The technician from CDC walked in, yanked 8 cards out of the back and restarted it. It was instantly faster.

      The card were delay lines. Physical devices that slowed down data movement at key places.
      The Data Center director exploded on the spot! The University threatened legal action.
      CDC pointed to contract terms, and the University decided not to peruse it. Computer
      was replaces with IBM gear shortly there after.

      --
      Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.
    4. Re:All I Have To Say Is by nickittynickname · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The car will now require an always on connection to work.

    5. Re:All I Have To Say Is by ackthpt · · Score: 5, Funny

      The car will now require an always on connection to work.

      "I'm sorry Dave, I can't you drive outside of network coverage."

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    6. Re: All I Have To Say Is by ultranova · · Score: 5, Insightful

      It's for fleet buyers and leasing companies.

      No, it's for people who want to see society become completely rent-based. You can't buy anything, thus you don't own anything, and so can't accumulate wealth and rise through the ranks. Stay in your place, peon!

      --

      Forget magic. Any technology distinguishable from divine power is insufficiently advanced.