May 23, 2017 — We’re still waiting the official announcement, but sources have confirmed Experian Automotive will announce in the near future that it has acquired String Automotive, a 12 year-old data analytics firm based in Newton, MA. The acquisition cements a relationship that began in 2014 when Experian Automotive’s Auto Market DNA℠ demographic and behavioral information’s… Continue Reading
May 19, 2017 — Late yesterday afternoon, data services provider Authenticom filed a motion in its antitrust lawsuit against Reynolds and Reynolds and CDK Global, seeking a preliminary injunction. TBR wrote about the pending request last week. The lawsuit alleges the dealer management system providers conspired in 2015 to force Authenticom and other data integration competitors out of… Continue Reading
May 4, 2017 — Fighting for its survival, Authenticom is seeking an expedited briefing and hearing schedule as part of its antitrust lawsuit against CDK Global and Reynolds and Reynolds. In the next few days, Authenticom will file a motion for a preliminary injunction asking the judge to issue a temporary ruling that would force… Continue Reading
May 3, 2017 — TEGNA’s board today approved of the spin-off of Cars.com slated to be completed on May 31. Trading is set to begin on June 1 on the New York Stock Exchange with the ticker symbol CARS. TEGNA stockholders of record at the close of business on May 18 will receive one share… Continue Reading
May 2, 2017 — Authenticom, a firm providing data integration services to car dealers, filed a lawsuit late yesterday against CDK Global and Reynolds and Reynolds alleging the two companies engaged in antitrust practices. The suit could have far-reaching implications — not only on the companies involved, but also on the entire automotive retail space. It’s another chapter… Continue Reading
April 18, 2017 – Get ready to jam to some tunes at the next Cox Automotive economic briefing…Seriously. The company announced this morning that DJ Smokey Smoke, also known as Jonathan Smoke, is succeeding long time automotive analyst Tom Webb as its chief economist. If you haven’t heard of him, you will. Smoke, who moonlights… Continue Reading
April 6, 2017 — (UPDATE — SEE BELOW) Acquisition activity among automotive retail vendors has ground to a halt in the the first quarter this year, according to data compiled by The Banks Report. Other than Solera Holding’s purchase of the British-based Autodata the first week of January, there have been no investments, IPOs or acquisitions…
March 2, 2017 — Ron Lamb, the president of Reynolds and Reynolds, has decided to leave the automotive retail technology giant to pursue opportunities in private equity, according to a statement provided to associates earlier today. He was named president of Reynolds and Reynolds in October 2010. He began his career with Reynolds in 1991 and… Continue Reading
February 20. 2017 (UPDATED) — The industry had a scare last Thursday when it appeared that a large data breach occurred involving several dealer management system (DMS) providers and dealer groups. What actually happened was much more benign, and involved none of the DMS vendors. Nor did the event involve any sensitive personal data. The… Continue Reading
February 4, 2017 — In what may become the year’s biggest story in automotive retail, the long simmering battle over data access in the automotive retail world escalated yesterday when a third party vendor sued tech giants CDK Global, Reynolds and Reynolds and one of their joint ventures for engaging in antitrust practices. This is the first…