The automotive industry needs to respond to a variety of forces that are disrupting traditional ways of doing business. Forces such as market uncertainty, changing customer demand, intensifying competition and regulation, and the emergence of new business models require automotive OEMs and dealers to respond with greater flexibility than ever. While software is used in all aspects of the automotive value chain, the largest near-term opportunity lies in the Retail and Aftermarket Services segments of the market, comprising the sale, maintenance, insurance, financing, and reselling of vehicles and services. The following report takes a closer look into the market as well as companies in the ecosystem, M&A and private placement activity.