CEO and founder of Metro-Detroit-based Livio Connect, Jake Sigal, recently announced the availability of over-the-air firmware updates for car stereos at an event. The latest offering from the company, which has been designed to enable easy connectivity between apps and cars for vehicle OEMs, Tier 1 manufacturers, and approved third-party developers, has already been recognized with 2012 Frost & Sullivan (News - Alert) New Product Innovation Award.

In a statement, Jake Sigal, said that, "Cars are good for over 10 years. iOS and Android update every 10 months. Over-the-air firmware updates mean that when your smartphone upgrades, so does your car stereo."

Livio Connect's over-the-air firmware update makes it easy for automotive OEMs and developers to ensure that their current infotainment systems are all up to date. Firmware updates can be automatically downloaded to the smartphone which then sends the firmware update to the car stereo via a USB, Bluetooth, or Wi-Fi connection. Once this is done, all the customer has to do is simply click "Yes" on his/her stereo; the rest is managed by Livio Connect.

Roger C. Lanctot, associate director with Strategy Analytics (News - Alert), said that, "Livio is in the forefront of the movement toward leveraging smartphones for a variety of high bandwidth applications. The perceived risks associated with over-the-air updating are greatly mitigated by leveraging a connected device to cover the last 12 inches to the in-vehicle system."

Livio Connect was established in 2008 and is considered to be one of the premier providers of Internet-Radio products and solutions for both the home and cars. The company specializes in establishing easy connectivity between apps and hardware devices.