Daimler and BMW agreed to sell their jointly owned parking-app business Park Now to European rival EasyPark Group as the German manufacturers focus more on their core automaking operations.
While Park Now has developed into a “significant player” in the mobility-services market, the sale will enable the unit to grow even further in Europe and the U.S., the luxury-car makers said Tuesday. The companies didn’t disclose terms of the transaction. Bloomberg News first reported on their talks with Stockholm-based EasyPark last month.
The sale marks the latest steps from BMW and Daimler to focus on automaking as the industry transitions away from the internal combustion engine.
Daimler last month announced plans to split up into the world’s largest makers of luxury cars and commercial vehicles, renaming itself Mercedes-Benz and separately listing its truck unit by year-end. BMW is expanding its EV offerings as it tries to defend market share at home and abroad against rivals such as Tesla Inc. and Nio Inc.
Still, BMW won’t exit all its mobility businesses as it needs to maintain a presence in services that offer alternatives to vehicle ownership, according to CFO Nicolas Peter. The Free Now ride-hailing service and car-sharing app Share Now will likely grow in importance as cities restrict access to private vehicles, he said in an interview.
BMW and Daimler combined their car-sharing and ride-hailing units in early 2019, pledging to pour more than 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) into the operation dubbed Your Now.
Park Now, which operates in more than 1,100 cities in 11 countries, allows drivers to use a mobile app to pay for parking on the street and in lots. EasyPark provides digital services for parking in more than 2,200 cities across 20 countries, according to its website, and has been expanding through acquisitions.
