USA: 69% car buyers don't want subscription options

The results for in-vehicle entertainment, however, were a contrast.

According to a recent survey, paying subscription fees for features in cars doesn't seem to be a popular choice. 69% of the respondents in the survey said they would not pay a recurring fee for car features and instead prefer the old-fashioned method of paying once and keeping it forever.

Having said that, the survey did mention that the acceptance of subscription fees for features also depends on the age of the buyer. Results show that subscription tolerance decreases with increasing age. Younger buyers are unlikely to be bothered by the monthly subscription, while Gen Z buyers are comparatively more tolerant than Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers. This, as per reports, is because the younger car buyers have grown up being accustomed to subscribing to anything, be it music, gaming or any entertainment. Hence, paying a monthly fee for a feature on a car sounds less alien to them than it is to an older buyer.

The results of the survey also showed that car buyers are more accepting of a subscription fee if it is for an entertainment feature or software update and less so when it's anything to do with a car's physical capabilities. The majority of the buyers want to pay up-front for hardware features like heated seats, adaptive headlights or even performance features than having to pay a monthly or yearly fee to access them.

The results for in-vehicle entertainment, however, were a contrast - with only 44% of the car buyers wanting to pay an upfront cost for features like Wifi and audio streaming.

Source: Autolist