Sales of smart home products from telecommunications providers are forecast to reach US $11.2 billion by 2022, according to a recent study by ABI Research.
Able to benefit from already being in the home of many consumers, telecoms providers such as Deutsche Telekom or Comcast are expected to continue to take a portion of sales in the connected home industry “though it will not be an easy journey,” according to ABI Research.
Regardless, it expects the industry’s market share to reach US$11.2 billion in revenues across different companies.
Recent launches include Vodafone’s SmartThings-powered V-Home smart home services into the Spanish market, expected to be followed by other European countries soon.
“Things are changing and CSPs (communication service providers) are accelerating their strategies for the smart home,” states ABI Research.
The report explored how telecoms companies are develop voice assistants/voice assistant compatibility to support their smart home strategies, highlighting companies such as include Telefonica with Aura, Orange with Djingo, and SK Telecom with Nugu.
“A platform strategy must be supported by the creation of a wide partner ecosystem and must be underpinned by an innovative monetisation approach favouring ‘freemium’ services over traditional bundles,” says ABI Research.
A number telecoms service providers currently provide TV and film streaming services as add-ons in addition to connectivity in the home, and a selection are bolstering this and the amount consumers are spending with them by offering monitored security services as well as connectivity.
“The smart home is core to the CSPs’ future and it is a real test to assess how far CSPs have developed their business beyond their telco heritage and how they can adapt their bundling business to market condition, experiment with innovation, and compete head-to-head with webscale players,” adds Pablo Tomasi, ABI Research’s senior analyst.
Consulting firm EY recently shared research suggesting that most consumers aren’t settled on where they should purchase their first smart home products from. Broadband providers were the most popular choice with 19% of the surveyed picking the vendor, followed by tech websites with 18% of support, specialist manufacturers with 17% and utility providers with 15%.
HiddenWires recent feature on the pro home automation market found that manufacturers and installers working in the field found that
telecom providers “add to the confusion” of the smart home market for consumers.