BMW Buys Parking App

BMW has acquired Parkmobile, an app that provides guidance and services for those looking for parking in North America, including on-street and garage parking payments and spot reservation. BMW Group had already held a minority investment in the company, and owned its Parkmobile Group Europe affiliate, but today it increased its holdings to reach majority ownership of Parkmobile, LLC, which is based in Atlanta, Techcrunch reported. This will provide BMW with a significant foothold in the US parking services market, since Parkmobile is available in over 300 cities stateside. Parkmobile will become part of BMW Group’s Mobility Services portfolio, which is expanding in scope and influence now that mobility is an area of increasing interest for automakers. The Parkmobile acquisition will also help address a growing issue for anyone seeking to get people around within cities: Traffic. BMW points out that as much as 30% of traffic in any given city is caused by people looking for spots to park. Parkmobile processed 50 million transactions from people finding parking in North America last year, and reached over 8 million registered users.