Managed Services Offer ISPs Opportunities in Evolving Smart Home: Parks

As more devices and smart home functionality depend on a solid Wi-Fi connection, opportunities are rising for managed services to oversee home networks, said Shane Eleniak, Calix Edge Products senior vice president-revenue, on a Wednesday Parks Associates virtual smart home conference. The average U.S. broadband home has 14 connected devices, according to Parks.

“It’s about having the right systems, the right spectrum and marrying that with managed Wi-Fi networks,” Eleniak said. He cited emerging networking trends including Wi-Fi 6 and 6e and TR-369, also known as User Services Platform, for remote management of connected devices, and said analytics allow Calix to “instrument and identify” the underlying subscriber experience so that systems can adapt to changing needs.

A Nest thermostat has different bandwidth needs from an 8K TV, Eleniak noted. It's important to understand the application of each device, the Wi-Fi channel, and the underlying network from device to user experience and be able to make real-time adjustments to ensure quality of experience. Rich operating systems, AI, cloud-based algorithms and standards are coming together to make that possible at large-scale “in what has become a very complex environment,” said Eleniak. “The home has become as complex as traditionally what we viewed as enterprise complexity.”

Security issues have taken on an extra level of concern with recent work- and school-at-home trends, said Eleniak. Parks data shows 26% of individuals in U.S. broadband households are working remotely, either full or part time; 18% are working remotely with another adult in the house, and 52% have children in remote school. He said ISPs can offer security protection against viruses, phishing attacks and malware, along with services such as parental controls, connected cameras and aging in place monitoring.

With the emergence of Wi-Fi 6 and 6e, concern is increasing over consumer confusion and protocol fatigue, said conference speakers. Aly Reyes, Linksys director-regional product management, said the router company is tackling both by focusing on customer solutions rather than terms. The company's approach is to guide consumers to the right product based on their specific needs to “take pressure off the consumer to be the expert.”

Nokia’s Justin Doucette, head of Wi-Fi, said the change to Wi-Fi 6 is a big improvement over the alphabet soup of 802.11 in its various forms. “Most consumers really don’t care; they just want it to work.” The COVID-19 pandemic is driving a steady increase in demand for speed to the home and then around the house, he said. When the quality of experience is there for the consumer, “the nomenclature is much less important.”

Reyes said the Matter standard, expected next year, is the “holy grail” of the smart home market, noting the breadth of companies that support the standard. “Not everybody wanted to play very nicely for a little while, but now, so many devices are out there, so many consumers have entered through multiple ecosystems, that now to take the smart home to the next level, we have to have Matter to move forward,” she said. “It’s good to have that motion and that direction.”

In the multi-dwelling unit (MDU) market, the smart home’s role has changed dramatically, said Mitch Karren, SmartRent chief product officer. The smart home company, which provides systems for property managers and homebuilders, has seen an uptick in education and awareness, he said. No longer does he have to explain the concept to prospective customers: “A lot of people are very well versed in what smart home is.”

Karren cited a lot of “progression and maturity” with smart home veteran companies that have been building devices for 10-15 years. He noted more advanced chipsets that are driving improvements in analytics, monitoring, reliability and battery life. Coverage range is also lengthening, which is especially important in apartments.

Reliable Wi-Fi is essential in a large apartment building that can have thousands of devices riding on it. Many devices can leverage low-bandwidth connectivity via cellular, but it’s important to have a strong internet connection, he said. Wi-Fi 6 will play a big role in the MDU market as the volume of devices grows.

Cooperation among competitors is helping accelerate the smart MDU market, Karren said, citing Apple’s decision to enable control of third-party locks via the iPhone’s Wallet and Home apps. Also, the Matter initiative, with members including Amazon, Apple, Google and Silicon Labs, is going to help interoperability and improve the overall consumer experience, he said. SmartRent is hoping Matter can “help improve some things on the MDU side.”

Smart home technology has a long runway in the MDU market, offering amenities for residents and ways to help owners and managers protect assets, he said.