UPI en Español  |   UPI Asia  |   About UPI  |   My Account
Search:
Go

Cars to get social networking profiles

|
 
The logo for Toyota is displayed on a Prius hood at the Chicago Auto Show at McCormick Place in Chicago on February 9, 2011. UPI/Brian Kersey
The logo for Toyota is displayed on a Prius hood at the Chicago Auto Show at McCormick Place in Chicago on February 9, 2011. UPI/Brian Kersey 
License photo
Published: May 24, 2011 at 1:52 PM

TOYOTA CITY, Japan, May 24 (UPI) -- Japanese car manufacturer Toyota said it is teaming with a U.S. company to create a social networking service for people to receive alerts from their cars.

Toyota and Salesforce.com said the Toyota Friend service will connect drivers with their cars, which will have full profiles on the site, and receive "chat" messages from the vehicle's profile about subjects including maintenance issues and driving directions, Britain's Daily Telegraph reported Tuesday.

"Social networking services are transforming human interaction and modes of communication. The automobile needs to evolve in step with that transformation," said Akio Toyoda, president of Toyota.

Toyoda said the service will be able to send messages directly to smartphones and other mobile devices. The service is scheduled to make its debut in Japan next year.

Topics: Akio Toyoda
Recommended Stories
© 2011 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

Order reprints
Join the conversation
Most Popular Collections
'Star Trek Into Darkness' screening NBC upfronts Met Ball 2013
'Great Gatsby' premieres in New York Spire raised on top of One WTC 2013: Celebrity break ups and divorces
Additional Odd News Stories
Your Daily Horoscope
The almanac
1 of 18
Iranians celebrate the qualification of  their soccer team  for 2014 World Cup
View Caption
Iranian women flash the victory sign during a street celebration in Tehran, Iran on June 18, 2013. The Iranian national soccer team defeated South Korea in their 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying soccer match in Ulsan, South Korea. UPI/Maryam Rahmanian .
fark
The coffee shop's sign said "Drive Thru," so she did
Is this elderly woman's citizenship in jeopardy because she a.) committed a violent crime, b.) is...
Judge: "Defendant, you are hereby ordered to never again appear naked in public. And stop taking...
Easily Misinterpreted Headline of the Day: "Paddling creates sense of oneness with nature"
HOO BOY, Paula Deen done buttered herself into a corner
College Professor quits College because College Kids act like College Kids. COLLEGE