Mercedes-Benz to allow customers leverage vehicle data

Daimler is considering the idea of new business ideas by third-party providers. As of December 2018, on customer request, Mercedes-Benz made access to vehicle fault codes available to independent third-party providers in line with the European type approval regulations. In this case Daimler will make all fault codes from the installed control units available to third-party providers for the use case, 'Remote Diagnostic Support' (RDS). This means that they can produce a remote diagnosis for networked Mercedes-Benz vehicles.

The consent of the Mercedes-Benz customer to purpose-defined data access by an independent third-party provider is mandatory and is given via the respective portals, such as 'Mercedes me' for digital passenger car services or 'Mercedes Pro' for digital van services. Only those data are transferred that are necessary for remote diagnostics and are to be made available on the express wish of the customer. Mercedes-Benz customers can withdraw their consent to data transmission at any time in the respective portals. Customers therefore always have transparency about which third-party provider has consent for access to specific vehicle data, and can change their mind at any time. Vehicle-generated data are made available by the so-called 'Extended Vehicle Concept'. There is no direct access to the vehicle by third parties, but only to the backend server of the vehicle manufacturer. This comprehensively ensures operating safety as well as data security.

Granting safe access to the backend of Daimler vehicles
Daimler will implement the extended vehicle and neutral server concept in full measure according to the agreement between the VDA (German Automobile Industry Association) and the ACEA (European Automobile Manufacturers Association). The aim of this agreement is to allow free competition between independent third-party providers and vehicle manufacturers.

On customer's request, and following his/her consent to Daimler and the third-party provider, purpose and use case related data packages are made available to third-party providers from the backend server and via the neutral server. These data are merely routed through the neutral server, without the data being saved or otherwise processed beyond the intended purpose. In the process, the third-party providers and their business models are not known to Daimler and the Daimler subsidiaries, but only to the operators of the neutral servers. Risks to operating and vehicle safety are avoided by a closed-loop connection between the vehicle and the manufacturer's backend server.