Parks Associates continued its twenty-sixth annual CONNECTIONS™ conference with our in-person conference in Frisco, Texas on May 17-19. Amanda Forsyth, Director of Product Management at Cognitive Systems. Ahead of the conference, Amanda provided insights on how smart home products are evolving and consumer insights that will have an impact over the next few years. Amanda spoke on the panel, Health and Wellness Solutions: Expanding the Market, on May 19 at 1:00 PM CT which addresses the drastic changes in the connected health market over the past two years and the impacts these changes will have on the smart home market. Continue reading to discover Amanda’s insights on the evolution of the smart home market.
How can the industry’s push towards interoperability (Matter, etc.) in 2022 to drive mass adoption of smart home solutions and connected devices?
Interoperability is not something that can be accomplished overnight. A consistent, dedicated effort is required to achieve the desired model of rapid and standardised digital integration and efficient data exchange. While progress may appear to be slow at times, it is still moving. That means the industry and its organizations must plan ahead. Businesses must ensure that their technologies, systems, or services can support interoperability now. Those in the industry can help drive the push towards interoperability and even mass adoption of smart homes or connected solutions by getting involved, in addition to incorporating long-term strategic thinking. Standards are extremely important in the development of technology through critical iteration and mind-sharing with industry experts. Matter and the IEEE, through their 802.11bf standard, are supporting the movement of WiFi Sensing standardization, which will see interoperability gain traction more quickly, ensuring a faster path to mass adoption.
As consumers’ broadband needs in the home expand (remote work, virtual school, etc.), what challenges and opportunities are present for broadband and other solutions providers?
One major challenge is that, in order to grow, service providers must add new services. Whether it’s due to evolving technologies, rising customer demands, or increased competitive pressure, broadband providers need to introduce new solutions to their customers to retain and grow their subscriber base. These new opportunities are a result of the increased time customers are spending at home, as they demand more and more from their home environment. The days of poor WiFi performance are over. Consumers are redefining previous expectations and transforming their home ecosystems. To meet these demands in an era of supply chain issues and frustrations with single-function devices, solution providers must consider software-based, rather than hardware-based, solutions.
The increased reliance on home networks also presents a plethora of opportunities. Solution providers can use their previously established infrastructure to support the mass adoption and smooth rollout of new technologies, particularly those that can be deployed with a simple software update. After all, the more time consumers spend at home using broadband providers’ networks, the more influential service providers become. Customers are reimagining their networks as they reimagine their homes. Broadband providers are well-positioned to offer new services to meet increased demand while maintaining current product offerings.
To read the full interview from Parks Associates, click here.