09 10 201542 Ph ot o A ud i The Frankfurt auto show always reflects the state of the global auto industry and this year is no exception On the one hand Frankfurt like the whole car market is big multi national varied and well established On the other the show and the industry face a fork in the road left is the tra ditional powertrain right is the electric motor or left is the tried and tested path from manufacturer to dealer to car own er and right is the new mobility world with its car sharing and car hailing models or left are the over 50s who love their car design engine power and torque while right is the social me dia generation which prefers a tablet over a car and would rather do without a vehicle than without an iPhone The 66th Frankfurt auto show officially known as the IAA is doing its best to live up to its reputation as the biggest and most trend setting automotive event in the world This year s exhibition will see around 1 000 automakers suppliers and other industry stakeholders show their latest products More than 800 000 visitors are expected during the show days which run from September 17 to September 27 And the or ganizers Germany s powerful auto industry association the VDA will highlight the transformation of the car business in a special 30 000 square meter New Mobility World a hall cum outdoor circuit that puts on display the technologies that are reshaping today s and tomorrow s mobility Thematic ar eas are connected car automated driving e mobility urban mobility and mobility services The Frankfurt show features the usual array of new product introductions many of which have already been teased to the media beforehand But the world s carmakers are introducing their new models into a market that is undergoing more change than at any time in the past 100 years The auto industry ac cepts that change hence the growing focus in Frankfurt and elsewhere on connected cars and other new technologies That focus has already resulted in closer ties between automakers and IT companies And last month Germany s three premium car brands Audi BMW and Mercedes Benz announced that they were acquiring the digital mapping business of Finland s Nokia The move underlines how important digital maps and location based services are for tomorrow s cars As Frankfurt approached industry observers also continued to speculate about the automotive intentions of IT compa nies such as Apple and Google Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche was quoted as saying in late August that he could envision a car making cooperation with these companies To put things in perspective A customer survey by consultants Arthur D Litte found that with regard to next generation autonomous ly driving vehicles a large number of car buyers worldwide trusts IT companies more than established carmakers But the consultants also said the established auto industry s reputa tion for data privacy and data security gives it an advantage over new automotive players from the IT industry which lacks this kind of reputation STORY The big event Frankfurt auto show between old and new mobility

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