GM, Suzuki, & Others Form e-Business Alliance In Japan

Autoparts Report, Sept 25, 2001

General Motors Corp., Suzuki Motors Corp., Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. and Isuzu Motors Ltd. have formed a joint venture company to develop e-business synergies and leverage Internet-based technologies. The new alliance will be named Japan AutoWeb Services Inc. The joint venture is 60.2 percent owned by GM, 19.9 percent by Suzuki and 19.9 percent by Fuji Heavy

This is the first time these four automotive alliance partners have agreed to work together in one area of business. The companies chose to collaborate as the GM Alliance Partner Group on e- business initiatives to take advantage of the opportunity the Internet offers to reach new and existing customers, to enhance the way they do business and to create new opportunities to grow their businesses, the companies said in a statement.

The first initiative from this new joint venture company is BuyPower Japan, which was launched in Japan on Sept. 14. BuyPower Japan is an online automotive shopping service that allows consumers to search, select, configure and request the price of any GM, Suzuki, Subaru or Isuzu passenger vehicle sold in Japan. Together the four companies have seven brands in Japan: Cadillac, Saab, Opel, Chevrolet, Suzuki, Subaru and Isuzu, they said.

With BuyPower Japan, online customers will be able to choose from 65 vehicle models in 179 variations, from micro-mini cars to luxury imported cars, and will be referred to their nearest participating dealer from whom they will receive personalized service, the alliance said. . BuyPower Japan can be accessed at www.buypower.co.jp .

According to Mark Hogan, GM Group Vice President responsible for e-commerce, the new company has access to GM's global e-business experience and tools such as BuyPower and OnStar. "Its challenge is to leverage existing and new Internet-based technologies into e-business solutions that address the needs of the sophisticated, Internet-savvy Japanese automotive consumer. Japan is the Internet giant of Asia. It has 47.08 million Internet users and last year accounted for 62 percent ($9.5 billion) of regional e-commerce," he said.

According to Rudolph A. Schlais, GM Group Vice President and President and CEO of GM Asia Pacific: "This unprecedented move demonstrates the power of the alliances. Together GM, Suzuki, FHI and Isuzu are the number two automotive group in Japan with approximately 17 percent of the market. Together we have 12 million vehicles on the Japanese roads. This alone gives the new company a sizeable customer base in Japan." GM has a 20 percent stake in Suzuki, a 20 percent stake in FHI and a 49 percent stake in Isuzu.