Shingaku Kochi says Mitsubishi Motors Corp. customers demand a great deal of safety, comfort and convenience in their vehicles. Kochi, who is Mitsubishi Motors general manager of its connected information business department, describes connected car services as a crucial method of improving the driving experience for those customers.

To help meet those customers’ demands, Mitsubishi Motors has entered into a commercial agreement with auto data services platform Otonomo. Under the agreement, Otonomo will provide Mitsubishi Motors’ connected car customers with new services. Otonomo says it will do that while adhering to international data privacy regulations.

Mitsubishi Motors will integrate with the Otonomo platform so its vehicles can share data with third-party services and application providers. Those include smart electric vehicle charging, parking, safety, concierge services, preventive maintenance and mapping.

Otonomo said Mitsubishi Motors will be part of a growing base of automotive OEMs that are already directly connecting vehicle data sources to the Otonomo platform.

Otonomo also said the joint initiative will use Mitsubishi Motors’ data assets to improve the customer experience through what it described as “a growing ecosystem” of more than 100 partners.

The companies will roll out the joint initiative in the United States and Europe throughout 2020 and beyond.

The companies say they will use the Otonomo Platform to ensure compliance with international privacy regulations like GDPR.

Also with the Otonomo platform, Mitsubishi Motors will be able to make aggregate connected car data available for applications that Otonomo says can benefit society. Some of those benefits include making smart cities smarter, improving road safety and traffic flow, and reducing congestion and associated emissions.

“Mitsubishi Motors and Otonomo have a common ambition to improve the connection between cars, society, and the environment,” Otonomo chief executive officer and co-founder Ben Volkow said in a news release.

Volkow continued, “Our role in enabling Mitsubishi Motors to expand their service offerings will make life on the road safer, smarter and more convenient. This is an exciting opportunity for drivers around the world, and we look forward to a continued relationship. We are very proud of this partnership, which will position Mitsubishi Motors as an industry leader, providing driver experiences powered by car data.”