As the car-sharing market in Japan rapidly expands, major automakers have been pressing down on the accelerator to get a share of the business.
Against a backdrop of consumers shifting away from “possessing” their own vehicle to “sharing” one, the automaker business model centered on vehicle production and sales has reached a turning point.
In an underground parking lot in Tokyo’s Shinjuku area, three Nissan Motor Co. vehicles used in the automaker’s car-sharing service are lined up together. By completing a membership registration in advance and reserving a vehicle through a smartphone, a car can be borrowed for fees that start from 200 yen for 15 minutes.
“I like driving but maintaining a car is expensive, so I’d never thought about buying one of my own,” said one user, a 44-year-old company employee from Toshima Ward, Tokyo.
Although no earnings targets have been indicated for its car-sharing service, Nissan President Hiroto Saikawa said that a business that generates profit by having cars in use generates a large added value.
It is also a source of great appeal, he added. Nissan also is studying the feasibility of a pickup service using self-driving vehicles.
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Against a backdrop of consumers shifting away from “possessing” their own vehicle to “sharing” one, the automaker business model centered on vehicle production and sales has reached a turning point.
In an underground parking lot in Tokyo’s Shinjuku area, three Nissan Motor Co. vehicles used in the automaker’s car-sharing service are lined up together. By completing a membership registration in advance and reserving a vehicle through a smartphone, a car can be borrowed for fees that start from 200 yen for 15 minutes.
“I like driving but maintaining a car is expensive, so I’d never thought about buying one of my own,” said one user, a 44-year-old company employee from Toshima Ward, Tokyo.
Although no earnings targets have been indicated for its car-sharing service, Nissan President Hiroto Saikawa said that a business that generates profit by having cars in use generates a large added value.
It is also a source of great appeal, he added. Nissan also is studying the feasibility of a pickup service using self-driving vehicles.
Continue Reading: click here