Are Cars the Next Must-Have Mobile Device?

These days it seems like we can’t consume enough information. We’re always connected. However, we may be the least connected during our morning and afternoon commute. Sure, you have radio ads and billboards giving you information, but for many people, it’s a time to clear their minds before starting the work day or taking care of families at night.

That could soon be changing.

In the not-so-distant future, self-driving cars could be hitting the roads, and with those cars, comes a way to serve up any piece of media anyone could possibly want. Dashboards will be the new iPads. Imagine kicking back and watching Netflix, checking out YouTube or Skyping with a friend, all on your way into the office!

This concept, already popping up at consumer electronic shows, presents fresh opportunities for advertisers to reach a captive audience. Cars can be targeted the same way as other mobile devices and they could offer specific, targeted audiences such as parents and kids on their way to school or executives on their daily commute.

Pandora recently began selling in-car ads separately from its desktop and mobile packages. They claim the audio ads are getting better results compared to other promos.

It’s uncertain when this futuristic sounding concept will be the norm, or what it will cost to own a self-driving vehicle with a dashboard full of information, but it’s something fun, or scary, to think about.