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[세종=이데일리 김상윤 기자] Negotiations between Hyundai Motor Company and Apple eventually ended. Although the possibility of resumption remains in the future, many opinions say that negotiations are difficult to continue for the time being.
On the morning of the 8th, Hyundai Motor Company and Kia announced that “there are not in progress discussions on the development of autonomous vehicles with Apple” through the same disclosure.
Foreign media are looking for the background of the suspension of negotiations in Apple’s unique’privacy principle’. Apple is renowned for its strong demands from suppliers and potential partners to keep negotiation-related secrecy. This is because, not only for leaking details of products and services, but also for acknowledging the existence of a cooperative contract, it has charged a huge penalty or immediately destroyed the contract.
On the other hand, there are many observations that the agreement between the two sides could not be reached on the terms of the contract. Looking at the past negotiation process between domestic carriers and Apple, we can see the background of the breakdown of negotiations between Hyundai Motor Company and Apple.
Apple, who used to be a ‘super-gap’ for a news agency
The’GapJil Contract’ between Apple and the telecom company began in 2009. At the time, the smartphone’iPhone 3GS’, which was unfamiliar to Korea, was released, and KT, the mobile telecommunication company’second place in 10,000 years’, signed an exclusive contract with Apple to aim for a turnaround. Instead of signing an exclusive contract with KT, Apple fulfilled most of its requests to KT.
A typical example is skipping advertising and repair expenses. Apple has signed a contract so that mobile carriers will cover most of the iPhone advertising costs and warranty repair costs. If you look at the iPhone ad, it is the same regardless of the three carriers. Apple creates an ad, and the carrier only flashes a logo at the end of the ad. Nevertheless, most of the advertising costs have been borne by carriers. In addition, Apple can use the patent rights held by telecommunication companies for free.
It was a humiliating contract, but the telecommunications companies in turn sign contracts on the same terms. As KT quickly increased its market share thanks to the popularity of the iPhone, LG U+ and SK Telecom are forced to introduce the iPhone. An official from a news agency said, “I tried not to bring in the iPhone because it was a humiliating contract condition.
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◇It’s not like’A’ in a future car contract
The contract between Hyundai Motor Company and Apple is also expected to have a fierce battle with both sides. From the perspective of finished cars, building a cooperative relationship with Apple can take off the existing internal combustion locomotive company image and attract attention as a future car company.
It is for this reason that stock prices of Japan’s Mitsuda, Subaru, Nissan Motors, Honda and Toyota Motors, as well as Hyundai and Kia Motors, surged only with the news that they are negotiating with Apple.
But there is a difference. The iPhone was a pioneer in the smartphone era, and its product performance has already been recognized in the market. On the other hand, Apple’s self-driving car is still intangible. It is only hoped that it will become an icon of innovation in cars like the iPhone.
On the other hand, the future car situation is different. Right now,’Tesla’ is the overwhelming number one electric car alone. Hyundai and Kia Motors are also among the top 5 in the world for electric vehicles. A platform (G-EMP) made exclusively for electric vehicles by Hyundai is also expected to be released soon. ‘Ioniq 5’, a next-generation electric car, has compiled all the technologies of Hyundai Motor Company. There is no reason for Hyundai and Kia to become subcontractors of Apple’s autonomous vehicles.
It is weighed in the analysis that Apple, who unilaterally signed a contract from the position of’A’, stopped negotiations when it could not fulfill the terms of the contract that it wanted in a different situation.
FTC’surveillance’ is also Apple Pharmaceutical
In addition, there is an analysis that the Fair Trade Commission’s recent approval of an agreement (voluntary remedial bill) for Apple’s allegations of gambling against Apple’s telecommunications companies has some influence.
Consent resolution refers to a system in which the FTC is suspected of violating the law, but instead of paying a penalty for illegality, companies themselves propose and implement corrective measures to close the case quickly. If the Fair Trade Commission imposes a fine, the entire amount will be attributed to the government treasury, but if a company makes its own correction, it has the advantage of directly relieving consumers or counterparties.
Although the Fair Trade Commission did not determine that Apple’s allegations were clearly “bad”, Apple agreed to improve a number of contracts through an agreement.
In order to advertise Apple products, it was decided to transparently disclose the process of negotiating and executing the advertising fund created with mobile operators. The contents that the mobile operator paid for the warranty repair cost were deleted. Many of the’gap-jil’ problems that had been a problem in the past have disappeared.
The FTC monitors Apple’s compliance with the agreement for three years. In this situation, it is difficult for Apple to make a request for a “bad contract” to Hyundai Motor Company and Kia with its dominant position. An official from the Fair Trade Commission said, “I have to consider who has the upper hand in the negotiations between Apple and Hyundai Motor Company,” but said, “It is true that it is difficult to adhere to the contract method with the old telecommunication company in Korea.”
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Should Apple-Hyundai Motors talk again?
In the end, Apple-Hyundai Motors negotiations are expected to change in the future depending on how the interests of the two companies change.
Experts are analyzing that it is difficult for Apple to find a company like Hyundai Motors as an autonomous vehicle partner. This is because the E-GMP platform is being built, and there are factories in the United States, so it has the conditions to start production right away. In the process of negotiating with other automakers, Apple can always re-negotiate with Hyundai Motor Company.
In addition, Hyundai Motor Company also has expectations for Apple’s software power. Some analysts say that Hyundai, which is still only strong in hardware, will continue to want to share Apple’s software technology through this contract.
An automobile industry official said, “It seems to depend on whether Apple will eventually negotiate on a flat playground or negotiate after redesigning an advantageous playground. The key is whether to create a consensus.”
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