Most drivers don’t want subscription-based options in their cars. The added cost, privacy, and security concerns turn people away, not to mention the entire principle of paying to use equipment that you already paid for when you bought the car in the first place. The New York state legislature has heard the cry and is working on Senate Bill S5708, which would make it illegal for manufacturers to charge subscription fees for features already installed on vehicles at the time of purchase. If signed into law, a situation like BMW’s infamous heated seat subscription would be subject to a fine of up to $250 for each sale.
New York State Senator James Skoufis, who is sponsoring the bill, told 6 News:
“If the automaker is building a feature into a car, for as long as cars have been invented, you’ve never had to pay a subscription to access those features,” Skoufis said.
When asked if he sees this as the next wave of corporate nickel-and-diming — turning safety into a luxury — Skoufis didn’t hesitate: “It is. There’s no question.”
Skoufis mentions safety because some manufacturers charge a subscription fee for features like automatic collision notification, which contacts emergency services automatically in the event of a crash. GM’s OnStar is one example of such a service. While OnStar has been accused of some sketchy sales and data privacy practices, it also legitimately saves lives, particularly when it activates “crisis mode” to provide free service in an area suffering a natural disaster.
This bill specifically targets subscription fees for accessing hardware that’s already built into the car and would traditionally be available in any vehicle equipped with it (heated seats, for example). However, it carves out an interesting exception:
(c) The provisions of this section shall not:
(1) apply to navigation system updates, infotainment features, satellite radio, in-vehicle Wi-Fi, telematics services, roadside assistance, software-dependent driver assistance or driver automation features, or vehicle-connected services that rely on cellular or other data networks for continued operation
A second exception would allow a dealer or manufacturer to charge for a software update not related to a safety-related defect, but it’s the first one that raises my eyebrows. Everybody has to pay the cellular bill, which is how connected services are typically delivered, and it’s reasonable for manufacturers to pass that small cost on to the consumer. However, this would also allow manufacturers to continue charging for automatic collision notifications, despite 6 News citing this as a safety system that should be included for free. 
It’s also interesting that the bill explicitly carves out an exception for driver automation features such as Tesla’s Full Self-Driving or GM’s Super Cruise. Those systems use hardware that is already installed on many cars, then unlocked with an expensive software subscription. New Yorkers will not be getting semi-autonomous systems for free, which is probably for the best since we already know they don’t understand New York City.
Additionally, Subscription Insider calls out a loophole that manufacturers could exploit:
Definition note: the legislation’s impact will hinge on how regulators define “ongoing service cost.” Even minimal data transmissions or software maintenance could be argued to qualify a distinction that may determine how broadly the law applies.
Potentially, a feature that does not require data transmission or software maintenance could be redesigned so that it does. Adaptive cruise control, for example, doesn’t require updates or a data connection to do its job, but it could be “enhanced” to enable software updates for new features, allegedly to make life easier for customers. It would also then qualify for this exception that would allow manufacturers to charge for the privilege. Alternatively, they could argue that it falls into the driver assistance and automation category, which is already exempt.

source