Acquisition Accelerates INRIX Development of ‘Smart Parking’ Services for Drivers Worldwide; ParkMe Co-Founders Join 

INRIX Inc., a leading provider of real-time traffic information and “connected” driving services worldwide, has completed the acquisition of ParkMe, a Santa Monica, CA, company that helps consumers find parking, make reservations and mobile payments worldwide. 

This deal makes Seattle-area INRIX the preferred provider of parking information and services to leading automakers, transportation agencies and drivers around the world, an INRIX media release announced in early September.

In expanding the company’s data aggregation and industry expertise, the acquisition helps INRIX more rapidly deliver a comprehensive set of parking services, including finding, comparing, reserving and paying for parking from a smartphone or vehicle. With these expanded capabilities, INRIX added, the acquisition further solidifies the company’s leadership as it expands the breadth and depth of the parking services it offers to Audi, BMW and Lexus, among others.

“For 10 years, INRIX has been focused on analyzing and facilitating the movement of vehicles around the world, and that includes avoiding congestion during a trip and at the drivers’ destination,” said Bryan Mistele, its President and CEO. “Over time, we’ve expanded our service to include real-time fuel price information, EV- charging, even parking. 

“Today [Sept. 10], ParkMe and INRIX become one company,” Mistele said. “Fueled by a talented staff and an unrivaled set of breakthrough technologies, together we [will] provide customers with the best source of driving intelligence in all its forms – traffic, fuel, EV, inter-modal navigation and parking worldwide.”

With more than 400 customers in 42 countries, INRIX is the preferred provider of driving intelligence to leading automakers and transportation agencies, including Audi, BMW, Toyota, more than 60 Departments of Transportation in the US, Highways England [formerly the UK Highways Agency], and the Danish Transport Authority.

Sam Friedman, Co-Founder and CEO of ParkMe, said, “Our mission has always been to make parking easier, faster and less expensive for consumers. By joining INRIX, we can achieve that vision faster than we could have on our own.”

ParkMe Co-Founder and COO Alex Israel added: “Becoming part of INRIX gives us the opportunity to work with some of the world’s leading automotive companies as we provide our services to millions of users around the world.”

In a “smart parking” market growing at 28% annually and expected to be worth more than $3 billion over the next decade, ParkMe has built the world’s most comprehensive parking database, which includes more than 29 million spaces in 84,184 locations in 3,232 cities spanning 64 countries, the media release said. 

ParkMe provides drivers with the ability to find on- and off-street parking, reserve a space, and pay for parking either through a mobile app or directly from the owner’s vehicle. The media release also noted that the company’s products join a rapidly growing suite of INRIX services designed to help drivers fight congestion, simplify navigation, find fuel and travel safely.

ParkMe will continue to operate from its offices in Santa Monica, CA. Its brand and mobile applications will continue, and there will be no service interruptions for existing ParkMe consumer and enterprise customers. 

Terms of the deal are not being disclosed, the media release said.

Steve Banfield, INRIX Marketing Officer, told Ingrid Lunden of TechCrunch.com that the acquisition is “a cash and share deal, where both ... Friedman and Israel are joining INRIX to continue developing the product.”