It looks like the guys at XM are interested in helping you do more than hear news from ex-NPR icon Bob Edwards; earlier this week they announced their intention to provide drivers with real-time information about parking spot availability. Now, you might find yourself asking, “How could XM do this?”
Well, that’s the kicker – while this may be cool, it obviously requires the deployment of spot-detecting technology wherever parking spots might be available. Translation: if this gets off the ground we’ll likely see it at large parking structures first. XM is working with Nu-Metrics and InfoGation to develop a system that uses color-coding to notify drivers about the percentage of available spots (methinks this is done via a simple mechanism that counts the number of cars coming in and subtracts the number going out). Let the satellite radio wars continue.