LogMeIn, Inc. has announced that it has been selected by Verdeva, a vehicle/driver information services innovator, to help the company realize its vision for turning gas pumps into Internet-connected transaction stations. Verdeva’s Efficient Vehicle Assessor (EVA) is designed to make it easy for insurers to implement lower-cost mileage-based policies, for consumers to pay motor vehicles fees, and for fuel retailers to gain new revenue streams.
“LogMeIn is enabling us to dramatically simplify development of our connected gas pump and fulfill a ‘go-big, go-wide’ deployment strategy in an accelerated timeframe,” said Kevin Condon, CEO, Verdeva. “With LogMeIn’s IoT expertise and business-focused approach, the Xively platform’s strong development and device management capabilities, and out-of-the-box Salesforce.com Service Cloud integration, we’ll be in a great position to bring a compelling solution to market quickly.”
“Visionary startups like Verdeva see the IoT as a means of disruption and opportunity, and like most IoT pioneers, they’re looking to quickly parlay the learnings from early rollouts into transformative commercial offerings. We’re delighted to partner with them to help accelerate this time to value,” said Chad Jones, VP of Internet of Things Strategy, LogMeIn. “Verdeva exemplifies what is possible when you take a business-first approach to the IoT—defining your macro drivers and objectives, and then designing and building a connected solution that enables you to realize those benefits in the shortest-possible time.”
As part of the initiative, Verdeva will be leveraging LogMeIn’s Xively IoT platform, a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) designed to help companies accelerate IoT initiatives. The company will also tap into the expertise of Xively Professional Services, a team of experienced IoT service providers that can help companies combine revolutionary cloud-connected devices, elegant mobile and web apps, and comprehensive CRM/ERP systems into fully-integrated IoT solutions. The Xively IoT platform is built on LogMeIn’s proven, highly-scalable Gravity cloud infrastructure — which supports millions of secure connections between people, devices and data across the globe.
By using Xively, Verdeva expects to accelerate time-to-market of its Internet-connected gas pump solution by six months and realize the following benefits:
- Optimize service chain and reduce originally anticipated support costs by 50%
Xively’s Salesforce integration will enable EVA devices to self-report and automatically trigger tickets that specify problems.
- Make it easy for insurers to implement mileage-based policies
According to Condon, insurance companies are trying to sell usage-based policies by putting tracking devices in cars but consumers, who favor this type of insurance, are balking at the intrusion, and the standards and cost issues inherent in connected cars are making this difficult to implement. Verdeva eliminates these barriers and uses existing RFID technology at a fraction of the cost of on-board devices.
- Enable convenience for consumers, new revenue channels for c-stores and government
Verdeva expects to create new revenue channels for its partners via extremely simple transactions that haven’t been possible previously. For instance, consumers can be prompted to pay DMV fees from the convenience of their car, governments can collect that revenue in an automated way, and fuel retailers can get a cut of every transaction, potentially increasing their profit margins by 70 percent or more.
- Gain 360-degree insights into real-world driver and vehicle profiles
Knowing which car and driver are involved in each transaction creates a detailed consumer profile that has significant value for retailers and insurance providers who can deliver highly targeted advertising, and for government agencies that can use that information to improve transportation policies.
