Belong to one network, get access to the other
In yet another innovation in the electric vehicle (EV) industry, two of the largest EV charge networks have developed a company that will allow the members of one network to use the other networks facilities. This opens the way to a much more convenient ownership experience for EV owners everywhere.
While there is some overlap between the two operators, each also operates in areas uncovered by the other.
Blink Network
ChargePoint Network
The new company, Collaboratev, LLC, is also actively seeking other network providers to join as affiliates.
“The creation of a vendor agnostic payment processing and authentication system for EV charging would alleviate consumer concern of being tied to one charging network and would therefore make electric vehicles more attractive to mainstream vehicle buyers,” said John Gartner, research director of smart transportation at Pike Research. We agree.
Pro: one less RFID card to carry around
Con: Less (effective) competition- Blink gets cover for their poor reliability
Not much of an upside to this one, I feel. Blink needs to get their act together; I don’t need the slight convenience of a marginally-skinnier wallet.
finecadmin – Welcome to Living LEAF. Blink – well, ECOtality in general – offers significant room for improvement. That said, I think that anything that assists in moving the general populace closer to embracing the idea of the EV is a good thing. Perception is reality (in the eye of the perceiver).