InstallerNet Takes on Mobileye

I’ve said before that the new car product category—advanced driver safety—could get a lift off this year and here’s another reason why. Mobileye—which makes a device that warns you of a head on collision while you still have a few seconds to brake—announced today it teamed up with InstallerNet’s network of over 3,000 car electronics Installers across the country. This puts Mobileye on the road to a nationwide presence for its $899 add-on (aftermarket) product.
I’ll have more details later but here’s some basics:
Mobileye’s C2-170 can be added to a car to give it some of the same safety features as a Mercedes-Benz, BMW or Volvo. It can save you from texting-while-driving yourself to death. See here.
(scroll to 1:30 minutes into the video)

The C2-170 uses a camera and microprocessor plus a small dash mounted display. It can calculate when you are closing in on the vehicle ahead of you too fast and issue a warning, by using algorithms that determine the likelihood of a crash. Even a 1.5-second warning can help prevent up to 90 percent of rear end collisions, said the company in a past interview.
But, Mobileye has found it hard to gain retail distribution for its add-on system because of the recession last year, it said, and because the C2-170 requires a heavy investment in installer training. Al & Ed’s Autosound is one of the few retailers stocking the product (Car Toys is looking at the category but hasn’t yet committed to stocking the C2-170).
InstallerNet says it will provide training to its retail network by including the product in its ProTeam vans which travel around the country demonstrating how to install products to its member retailers.
InstallerNet operates a network of car, home and commercial installers that includes 3,600 car AV retail installers, 1,110 of which are Best Buy outlets. The company recently purchased the Mobile Electronics Retailers’ Association (MERA) and is now that sponsor of the popular industry event KnowledgeFest, to be held this year on October 10-12 at the Gaylord Texan Resport in Dallas.
Source: InstallerNet