General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. will soon have genuine competition for two of their most prized, exclusive features, now that an independent supplier is selling a service that combines aspects of GM's OnStar safety and communications network with Ford's new Sync system for voice control of mobile phones and iPod-type music players.

Hughes Telematics, based in Atlanta, on Dec. 4 announced a deal to make its service standard equipment on North American Mercedes Benz vehicles. That contract follows Hughes' agreement to make the service standard on all Chrysler LLC models beginning in 2009.

The fee for the service will be competitive with OnStar, said Erik Goldman, Hughes Telematics president. OnStar, which has about 5 million subscribers, sells two service packages priced at $18.95 a month and $28.95 a month.

As with OnStar, the features Hughes provides will vary, depending on vehicle choice and subscription level. The available services for monthly subscribers will include emergency communications, turn-by-turn navigation, roadside assistance, and voice commands for phones and iPods.

In addition to the subscription service, Hughes will allow vehicle owners to buy services on a pay-per-use basis, Goldman said.

For instance, if you needed directions just a couple of times a year for long trips, you would push a button in the car, speak with an operator who would download the directions and bill you for the service. The same kind of pay-to-play program might allow you to purchase a song or a CD from Sirius satellite radio or download the menu and prices from a restaurant.

Vehicles equipped with an on-board navigation system will get regular map database updates. Owners of navigation systems today have to buy a new database every few years to stay current, often for hundreds of dollars.

Hughes' system also will allow automakers to download software fixes to correct problems with vehicles, potentially avoiding recalls and trips to the dealer for service.

Hughes Telematics was spun off from Hughes Electronics, which helped GM create OnStar in the 90s. (Goldman, however, was not part of the OnStar project.)

Goldman says Hughes has developed voice-recognition software that will make the system exceptionally easy to use.

It even offers what he calls teen-tracking, the ability to have the car inform you if it has been driven beyond a certain area, above a set speed or to an off-limits location — say the address of the deadbeat 20-year-old your 16-year-old honor student is dating. That tracking ability will be an opt-in feature, Goldman said, meaning that Big Brother won't be watching unless you ask him to.

OnStar, which GM owns and offers only on GM vehicles, is rather dismissive of Hughes' upstart system. OnStar points out that it has been around since 1996 and has dealt with more than 11 million requests from customers, while Hughes has yet to unlock its first vehicle in a mall parking lot.

However, look for OnStar to roll out new features to compete with Hughes soon, and there's no doubt that other automakers will love offering the safety and convenience that GM currently has to itself.

(Mark Phelan is the auto critic for the Detroit Free Press. He can be reached at phelan@freepress.com or 313-222-6731. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.)