Most Consumers Aren't Confident in Ability to Install Smart Home Devices, Says Report

Two-thirds of respondents in a recent survey believe consumers aren’t confident in their ability to do complex smart home installations on their own, said a CSG International report Tuesday, based on a survey of 2,000 consumers in the U.S., Australia, Brazil, Malaysia and Mexico. Survey results indicated "professional, technical resources will play a significant role in bridging the gap between consumers and the world of devices around us,” said Chad Dunavant, vice president-product management, CSG, a platform provider for managing field-service operations for pay-TV providers. “There is a clear opportunity for Pay TV providers to evolve the skills of their field service technicians to capitalize on the growing consumer-based IoT market,” said Dunavant. Findings showed most respondents expect to connect home security and monitoring systems (49 percent) and smart home automation devices such as remote light controls and door locks (48 percent) in the next three years, but consumers want help -- both online resources and in-person installation assistance -- for simple and complex connections. Some 84 percent said consumers will want help from a professional to connect two to five devices. Just over half of respondents said finding a reputable company for technical help was their most important criterion, outweighing on-demand access and finding the lowest-cost option, it said.