INTERVIEW: Mazda Considering Offering Mobility Services

November 9, 2018

Tokyo--Mazda Motor Corp. <7261> is considering offering mobility services using advanced technologies such as the Internet and autonomous driving, its president and chief executive officer, Akira Marumoto, said.

Providing such services is "an option" for the Japanese automaker, Marumoto said in a recent interview.

"Collaboration with nonautomotive sectors such as telecommunications is possible," he said, signaling Mazda's readiness to team up with other companies to obtain know-how about the new services.

Automakers globally have been racing to join forces with technology companies to provide new transportation services using mobile and other technologies, including ride-hailing.

Toyota Motor Corp. <7203> and Softbank Group Corp. <9984> last month announced a partnership to offer new mobility services using automated driving technology.

Mazda has been testing a transportation service using connected technologies to support elderly people living in sparsely populated areas.

An expansion of Mazda's mobility operations will make "its collaboration with a variety of sectors possible," Marumoto said. Jiji Press