Delivery of Amazon goods via flying drone might sound outlandish to some, but another, mobile app-powered experiment may draw similarly raised eyebrows: Amazon deliveries to your car trunk.
The experiment was revealed on Wednesday by automaker Audi on its website.
Launched as a pilot program in partnership with Amazon Prime and DHL Parcel for customers in Munich, Germany, Audi Connect Easy Delivery will allow Audi owners to give DHL a temporary access code to their trunk to allow the delivery person to deposit a package there.
IMAGE: DHL PARCEL
Using a specially designed smartphone app, the delivery person will be given the exact location of the car and have the ability to send delivery confirmation once the job has been completed. The delivery person's access to the car owner's trunk will only be good for a limited time window, and once the trunk is closed after initial delivery, the access code will be voided.
The innovative experiment means that you could very well leave your office after a long day of work and find the groceries and supplies you need waiting in your car, saving you hours of running errands around town. What is even more exciting about the service is that
it will allow users to send mail and packages "from" their car trunks as wellit will allow users to send mail and packages "from" their car trunks as well.
However, even though the service is directed toward Amazon Prime customers (who are often frequent users), the notion that the service could be used for nefarious purposes is hard to ignore (e.g. sending illegal or dangerous packages from the trunk).
Such concerns aren't mentioned in the company's initial announcement of the program, with the main security concern focused on consumer safety. "As with all of our connect services, the security of the car and of customer data has top priority for Audi," said Ulrich Hackenberg, a member of the board of management for technical development at AUDI AG, in a statement released by the company.
When contacted by Mashable, an Audi spokesperson confirmed that Audi Connect Easy Delivery will only be available to a small number of Audi owners selected by the company, and will not be available to all Audi owners in Munich, thus ruling out any potential problems in the initial phases of the program. Nevertheless, if the pilot program is successful and expands, the issue of security and the potential misuse of the system will likely need to be addressed more directly.
The pilot program, which is scheduled to last for several months, is set to launch in Munich in May.
The pilot program, which is scheduled to last for several months, is set to launch in Munich in May.
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