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The New (Worrying) Trend Coming with Electric Bikes: Features as a Service

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NOTE: This is an opinion piece. The views expressed within may not reflect the views held by all staff at webBikeWorld, and are the express views of this author alone.

In the world of motorcycles, at least at the moment, it is expected that when you buy a new bike, you get access to everything on the bike. You’re already paying thousands, sometimes tens of thousands, for a vehicle, and you expect everything to be there and working as soon as you take delivery. There is, however, a worrying precedent being set in the electric motorcycle market that some of those expected amenities will be locked away behind a paywall.

If you are familiar with the Information Technology business, the idea of offering something—such as a server, a complete computer system, or some kind of software—on a rental-style payment system is fairly commonplace. These are known as “as a Service” plans, and are implemented in case you do not want to hand over the sometimes tens of thousands of dollars for specialized systems and software licenses.

A very common example of this is via Adobe Software and their Creative Cloud Software as a Service, where you “rent” the license to use things like Photoshop and Premiere Pro for as little as $10 per month, instead of the $1,000+ each piece of software would cost to buy outright. But how does this apply to electric bikes?

What Kinds of Things Can Be Locked Behind a Paywall?​


This kind of idea does exist in a very limited way in the automotive market—in that if you want to listen to satellite radio, you need to subscribe. In Tesla EVs, if you want to use autopilot on a secondhand model, you need to hand over the cash to do so as the new owner. However, in terms of safety features, you don’t buy a car and then expect to find that to use the ABS, you need to subscribe to the manufacturer’s braking system, as an example.

Convenience features, however, are quite liable to be put behind a subscription or a paywall. Say, for example, you buy an electric motorcycle and plug it in to a charge point, either in your home or at a charging station in your city. The bike itself is capable of 150 kW charging, but when you plug it in, you find that the bike only charges at 75 kW. Surprise, that 150 kW charge rate needs you to buy the 150 kW charge rate pack, for only an extra $1,500!

Top mount charge port on a 2022 LiveWire One
The 2022 LIveWire One electric motorcycle. At the moment, it comes fully unlocked to the maximum charging rate that CCS1 Level 3 DC fast charge stations allow, regulated by the onboard controller. This can charge the entire 15.4 kWh battery from depleted to 100% in just about an hour. Image via LiveWire

Other prime targets for paywall restrictions include features like rider-set riding modes, heated grips, electronically adjustable suspension, even connectivity to a smartphone app to track battery usage and average miles per kWh ratings. While they don’t take away from the functionality of the bike to move and be ridden, they are features that most riders would realistically expect to simply be available.

The extremely worrying thing is that the example of the charge rate doubling above… wasn’t hypothetical.

A Case Study: Zero Motorcycles & Locked Features​


Zero Motorcycles, as many know, were one of the first manufacturers to leap headfirst into the electric bike market. It could be argued that they helped kickstart the electric motorcycle movement in the Americas, and have had moderate success in changing people’s minds about whether electric motorcycles will actually catch on. However, with the release of their 2022 SR/F and SR/S bikes, using the new Cypher III+ management software and associated smartphone app, they have fully introduced the concept of “Features as a Service” behind extra paywalls.

Charge port on a 2022 Zero SR/S
Charging a 2022 Zero SR/S. To unlock the full speed charging and the entire charge capacity of the battery, you need to fork over nearly $3,700 on top of the already expensive $19,995 base price! Image via Zero Motorcycles

For example, with the 2022 Zero SR/S, if you want to charge your bike 17% faster, that’s $295. Want to use the built-in dash-display navigation system? $195. To double your charging speed, as explained in the previous section, that is $1,495. Live somewhere chilly and want to use the included heated grips? That’s another $195.

This doesn’t just relate to charging and features, however. The truly worrying paywall is the battery itself, which is marketed as a 15 kWh battery, but is realistically an almost 18 kWh unit. Why? Because if you want to unlock an extra 10% of battery capacity, that is a whopping $2,195! To put that in perspective, to add 10% more capacity to an artificially locked battery, you need to pay just about 80% of the MSRP of a Honda Metropolitan scooter.

It gets even worse with the 2022 Zero SR/F. While the SR/S has rider aides and bonus features locked behind a paywall, the SR/F has actual performance and safety locked away. It is advertised as having 110 HP, 140 lbs-ft of torque, and a 124 MPH (200 KPH) top speed, with lean angle sensitive six-axis stability control and a fully-featured dual-zone ABS system.

You get that… if you buy the premium trim.

2022 Zero SR/F
The 2022 Zero SR/F. If there is ever one thing that should never, ever be behind a paywall, it’s safety features. Yet, with the SR/F, if you want to get fully activated ABS and 6-axis stability control, you need to pay an extra $1,795, unless you buy the $22,000 Premium version of the bike. Image via Zero Motorcycles

If you buy any other trim, you are restricted to 74 HP, 122 lbs-ft, and 104 MPH (167 KPH). Crucially, you also only get accelerometer-based stability control, and single-zone ABS on the front wheel only. To unlock the true power and safety of the bike, you need to fork over another $1,795.

To lock safety features behind a paywall goes beyond worrying to flat-out concerning, especially when you’re paying $17,500 or more to get a top-of-the-range Zero bike. Want the Premium SR/F with all the power and safety unlocked, but none of the extra features unlocked? That’s nearly $22,000, with nearly $4,300 needed to unlock all the features that you would expect to already be included at that retail price.

Cypher III+ smartphone app from Zero, connected to a SR/S
The app that controls it all. Cypher III+ is the newest version of Zero’s app that allows you to unlock all the features of your SR/S and SR/F—if you pay the one-time charge per feature. Image via Zero

To play the devil’s advocate, there is a method behind the madness. By implementing software and firmware locks on features and power, it means that only one basic bike needs to be built. It’s after the bike has left the production line that the locks are put in place (or the bike is left unlocked if it’s a premium model). This streamlines both finances, materials, and production speed to optimize delivery times. Also, the pay-to-unlock features, as they are already built-in to the motorcycle, are nearly 100% pure profit.

It also allows for the possibility of incentivizing the features locked away. For example, maybe Zero will unlock the heated grips for the first week of September, when fall winds are in the air and it would be lovely to have toasty warm hands. It could also have demo days, such as during the summer, the first Tuesday of each month, your bike will be at full power with all features unlocked, and you can ride around to test them out. By showing how convenient the navigation system is to help you find a charge station, and then also allowing you to charge at the full power capability, you might just be tempted to pay to unlock.

To a rider, or potential owner, the complete opposite is true. You’ve saved up as much as you can, you’re really excited to be on the bleeding edge of environmentally-responsible green motoring, as well as looking forward to the immediate torque and power an electric motor provides. Imagine, then, the sour taste that would be in your mouth after buying your shiny new 2022 Zero SR/S and finding that to even charge it at the advertised speed, you need to hand over another full paycheck’s worth of money. Just to charge it at the advertised speed.

There is no way that this will catch on, right?

Will this Actually Succeed? Comparing Features as a Service to Other Paywall Models​


The simple fact of the matter is that we, as a society, are already neck deep in “as a Service” models. You have a smartphone plan, an internet/tv package plan with your favorite channels on a subscription, a Spotify subscription, and for every seven coffees you buy from your shop of choice with your plan card or by using your Google or Apple wallet via that shop’s app, you get one free.

Breaking that down, that’s voice/text as a Service, internet as a Service, entertainment as a Service, music/radio as a Service, and a rewards-based plan to entice you to use that specific coffee shop repeatedly. This is a gross oversimplification, but the point is that we, as North Americans, are already living with most of the things we use day to day on a “as a Service” model, with a rewards-based system for participating in it.

If you or anyone you know also plays any online games—such as World of Warcraft or Final Fantasy XIV—that require a monthly subscription, you can bundle “Game as a Service” in there as well.

Subscription rates for the popular MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV for North American players
Final Fantasy XIV’s information page about subscription rates per month to play. While not in the realm of expensive from a single person point of view, multiply those prices by the approximately 5 to 10 million active players the game has globally at any one time. All of a sudden, it becomes apparent how a subscription system can be massively profitable. Image captured from Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XIV Game Information Page

Again playing the devil’s advocate, the simple truth is that it’s already happening in the automotive sector, especially in the luxury market. BMW has recently introduced a paywall to unlock heated seats in their 3 and 5 Series cars, despite the fact that the physical systems to make them work are in every 3 and 5 Series. As well, the unlocks to all of the items for Zero are one-time payments attached to each owners’ Cypher III+ account, so if your bike is written off in an accident and you get another Zero, once the account is connected, the unlocks will apply immediately.

Realistically, the only way that this type of “Features as a Service” trend will not succeed is if the voting for it is done with wallets—for example, buy a KTM Freeride E-XC instead of a Zero FX. Don’t unlock the heated grips or double charge rate unless you absolutely need them. Don’t buy the SR/F if you can buy the SR/S, because at least the SR/S has full motor power and safety features unlocked.

The truth is, however, that we are a society of convenience in North America. What is $195 against untold miles of toasty warm hands? What is $1,500 if it means you spend 20 minutes at the charge station instead of 45? Time, as the saying goes, is money, and going from 10% to 80% charge in 20 minutes means you’ll already be halfway home by the time the guy that didn’t unlock the double charge rate even reaches 80%.

So will “Features as a Service” succeed? In the concerned opinion of this author… most likely.



The post The New (Worrying) Trend Coming with Electric Bikes: Features as a Service appeared first on webBikeWorld.

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So if you desire an optional feature on the product you‘re buying or already own, you pay extra for that option. What is new or worrying about that? Perhaps the only thing new is the method of payment and use of the word “paywall”.
 
So if you desire an optional feature on the product you‘re buying or already own, you pay extra for that option. What is new or worrying about that? Perhaps the only thing new is the method of payment and use of the word “paywall”.
The problem is, as far as I understand the product you bought already includes the features, but you can't access it, which to me and many others is just ridiculous and doesn't make sense.

Example you buy a bike that doesn't have heated grips, so you want heated grips with the bike, an extra 150? dollar and the bike comes with heated grips.
But in the case of Zero, you buy a bike that already includes heated grips, but they only work when you pay extra.
 
The problem is, as far as I understand the product you bought already includes the features, but you can't access it, which to me and many others is just ridiculous and doesn't make sense.

Example you buy a bike that doesn't have heated grips, so you want heated grips with the bike, an extra 150? dollar and the bike comes with heated grips.
But in the case of Zero, you buy a bike that already includes heated grips, but they only work when you pay extra.

Including the heated grips hardware on all units built might make sense if it keeps overall costs low. Perhaps the additional cost of the fancier heated grip hardware is not as much as the cost might be of managing individual bike orders and custom builds on the assembly line. In other words, build all the bikes the same, manage the options at the time of sale or thereafter. I never worked in manufacturing or marketing, so I don’t know, but I’m open to the idea that it may not be as crazy as it sounds.

For hardware option kits sold separately, the manufacturer maybe projects the popularity of the option, then they might build x number of kits in the hopes they can be sold. The expense is now already baked in. They warehouse the option kits for some time, then possible some unsold kits are eventually dumped at a loss. In addition, when a hardware kit is
purchased, there is the additional higher cost of installing the kit in the field. Perhaps that plan is worse than just putting the hardware on all the bikes in the first place, and cashing in on option purchases on some but perhaps not all motorcycle sales. Again, I’m open to all explanations for which is the better method.

In the case of bikes sold at the price point of the Honda NC series in the USA, I don’t see Honda ever putting ”locked” hardware on the motorcycle. Honda appears to be on the other end of the spectrum, with the bike sold with stripped down hardware (not even a centerstand!) to keep the MSRP low and attractive. For Honda to sell overbuilt bikes with extra hardware in the hopes that some buyers might actually want to pay for the extras seems opposite of Honda’s current marketing model.
 
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The way I see it is there is now one model with a base price instead of having different models with different features. You buy the bike with the features you want. If you don't want heated grips you don't have to pay for them. If you live in Florida or only ride in warm weather you don't need them. If you decide you are going to ride cross country one day and think...man I wish I had heated grips. You can add them anytime you want without having to install them. In my opinion the article is misrepresenting the system. It implies that you pay for things and then have to pay again to use them. My interpretation is buy whatever features you feel have value to you.
 
The way I see it is there is now one model with a base price instead of having different models with different features. You buy the bike with the features you want. If you don't want heated grips you don't have to pay for them. If you live in Florida or only ride in warm weather you don't need them. If you decide you are going to ride cross country one day and think...man I wish I had heated grips. You can add them anytime you want without having to install them. In my opinion the article is misrepresenting the system. It implies that you pay for things and then have to pay again to use them. My interpretation is buy whatever features you feel have value to you.
You are buying a bike with all the features, so you are probably already paying for it too or the company is making a loss on the base models? So you are paying the price for a full featured bike but only get the base model and if you want the features you are overpaying even more.
 
These things are already very expensive without adding more to that. Furthermore they currently are only practical for short journeys or commuting. In short imho they are expensive toys by comparison with good basic motorcycles like our much loved NC's which are a fraction of the price and will take You all over the world with a minimum of fuss and with the addition of inexpensive accessories.
 
You are buying a bike with all the features, so you are probably already paying for it too or the company is making a loss on the base models? So you are paying the price for a full featured bike but only get the base model and if you want the features you are overpaying even more.
The buyers are paying for a bike with a fixed basket of features. They know the price and they know the features. They get to decide if the price for the basket of features has value to them. If the bike is deemed too expensive for the features included they can choose not to buy.

I don't think the company is taking a loss. I think they are experimenting. They are simplifying their manufacturing process by making a single model. My assumption is that they hope that people will want upgrades. They hope that if the upgrades are easy and cost effective that more people will take them up on them.

Our motorcycles don't come with heated grips. People can add them for an additional cost for the parts and labour. Many people take a budget bike and add extra dollars to it to customize it to their liking.

I actually think the article is poorly written. In my opinion it exaggerates differences that are not actually there. It implies that there is a monthly service fee like a video game or software as as service where I have not seen evidence of that unless I missed it. The idea that safety features are behind a paywall already exists. If you want to have an NC with ABS it was only available on a DCT which cost more...sounds like a paywall. They compare a fully featured Livewire priced at $32,500 but the orange colour is behind a $500 paywall with a zero at $19995 and the Zero is the problem?

I am not in the market for a Zero and don't think it is a good fit for my needs but I find the concept interesting and I fully support people voting with their wallet.
 
I actually think the article is poorly written. In my opinion it exaggerates differences that are not actually there. It implies that there is a monthly service fee like a video game or software as as service where I have not seen evidence of that unless I missed it. The idea that safety features are behind a paywall already exists. If you want to have an NC with ABS it was only available on a DCT which cost more...sounds like a paywall. They compare a fully featured Livewire priced at $32,500 but the orange colour is behind a $500 paywall with a zero at $19995 and the Zero is the problem?

I am not in the market for a Zero and don't think it is a good fit for my needs but I find the concept interesting and I fully support people voting with their wallet.
I agree. This is not the first (poorly written) article that has tried to use Zero’s Cypher III operating system‘s option purchase system as some kind of example of a subscription service, which it is not. “Paywall“ seems to be the buzzword being used to stir up the motorcycling communities emotions.

The more I think about this, the more Zero’s option buying plan makes sense. Say the dealer orders, for example, three Zero SR/S models to stock in the showroom. Dealer can’t be sure which options buyers may or may not want. All three bikes delivered to the dealer are identical, until the actual buyer checks off what options they want and pays for them. The bike quickly rolls out the door custom configured for the buyer, or can easily be configured at a later date. The dealer is not stuck with over or under optioned models that might languish on the floor and have to be discounted at year end.
 
There may be some confusion because some auto manufacturers are trying to make a monthly subscription for things like using your key fob or heated seats.
 
There may be some confusion because some auto manufacturers are trying to make a monthly subscription for things like using your key fob or heated seats.
That’s fine as long as the authors clear up their confusion before they write articles.
 
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