Apple and Google's in-car operating systems both just got a big boost: Ford has announced that CarPlay and Android Auto will be coming to its vehicles this year.
As also reported on by The Verge and TechCrunch, new compatible vehicles with the company's Sync 3 infotainment hardware will get the OS's this year.
This includes the 2017 Escape, which will go on sale in Spring. (Confusingly, cars labelled 2017 go on sale in 2016, "2016" vehicles went out in 2015, and so on.)
Meanwhile, "2016" vehicles will be able to upgrade at some point later in the year.
CarPlay and Android Auto both sync with the user's smartphone and offer an array of tools, including hands-free navigation, music selection, a phone, and control of some settings.
The move by Ford is going to improve adoption of both tech companies' OSes in a big way. Ford, and its associated brands, is the single largest car brand in the US, selling 178,000 units in the country in November 2015. (Second-place is Chevrolet with 156,000, according to data compiled by Statista.)
On February 28, Axel Springer, Business Insider's parent company, joined 31 other media groups and filed a $2.3 billion suit against Google in Dutch court, alleging losses suffered due to the company's advertising practices.
