DETROIT, Nov. 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — AUTOVATE 2017, created by The Banks Report and hosted by CarStory, will feature seven early stage startup companies during its debut event Dec. 7-8, in Austin, TX. The Startup Showcase will allow attendees to learn more about these breakthrough technologies through presentations and panel discussions with industry experts. “We created AUTOVATE to bring together the influencers and… Continue Reading
DETROIT, Nov. 14, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Debuting Dec. 7-8 in Austin, TX, is AUTOVATE 2017, a unique event for dealer executives, investors, entrepreneurs and auto manufacturers. Created by The Banks Report and hosted by CarStory, AUTOVATE will focus on advanced technology solutions driving the automotive retail industry forward, including the innovators behind the solutions, decision-making dealer executives, and investors funding growth in the industry. “AUTOVATE is a… Continue Reading
November 21, 2017 — Kia Motors introduced “Kian” this week, an extension of its chatbot NiroBot, which launched last year during the Super Bowl. Kian is an artificial intelligence-powered virtual assistant designed to help shoppers wade through the data stacks of information in the car buying process – from pricing, payments, special offers, vehicle images, competition,… Continue Reading
November 21, 2017 — Earlier this week, Indiana-based Kelley Automotive Group announced plans to purchase Tomkinson BMW. The acquisition will expand Kelley’s employee base to more than 600, and add BMW to its selection of brands which include GMC, Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac, Ford, and Volvo. Other than more staff, the addition of another brand, and a… Continue Reading
November 16, 2017 — CallRevu, a dealership call management software firm founded by Chip King and David Boice in 2010, will announce later today that it has entered into an investment relationship with Serent Capital. As part of the investment in CallRevu, Serent is acquiring the interest held by marketing agency Team Velocity, which is… Continue Reading
November 7, 2017 — Score this as a big win for Reynolds and Reynolds and CDK Global in the antitrust lawsuit filed against them by Authenticom. Late yesterday, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit out of Chicago vacated the preliminary injunction the lower district court in Wisconsin had awarded Authenticom in…
November 1, 2017 — Today’s announcement that private equity firm Primus Capital completed an investment in fusionZONE Automotive indicates the second tier of dealership website and digital marketing firms is gaining traction on the two giants in the space — Dealer.com and CDK Global. Terms of the deal were not disclosed but Primus generally keeps… Continue Reading
October 28, 2017 — CDK Global acquired enterprise reporting company Dashboard Dealership Enterprises (“DDE”), the company announced this week. The integration of DDE’s flagship product, Executive Eye, into the CDK platform will help CDK customers better measure their efficiency and profitability, the company says. As part of the acquisition, DDE CEO Josh Blick and COO William… Continue Reading
October 25, 2017 — Team Velocity Marketing scooped up video pre-roll production company, Car-Mercial, the company announced earlier this week. Car-Mercial’s video technology will be integrated into Team Velocity’s marketing automation platform, Apollo.Terms of the deal were not disclosed. With video being the fastest growing consumer medium, Team Velocity believes Car-Mercial’s dynamic video platform will… Continue Reading
UPDATED — October, 21, 2017 — Last month, the Trophy Automotive Group completed the purchase of four dealerships that were part of the eight-store Sage Automotive Group in the Los Angeles, CA area. Trophy, which was started by Nasser Watar in 2014 with the acquisition of Mercedes Benz of Encino, acquired West Covina Nissan, Universal… Continue Reading