Matter, Due Midyear, Will Help Remove Smart Home Device Barriers: CSA

The concept of the Matter protocol was hatched in 2019 to address “what comes next” in the IoT to overcome barriers to adoption, growth and use, particularly in the smart home, said Michelle Mindala-Freeman, head-marketing and member services, Connectivity Standards Alliance, on a Parks Associates webinar Wednesday. Release 1.0 of Matter is due midyear.

Mindala-Freeman defined Matter as a “universal language” for the IoT, focused on IP and a common application protocol with the goal of making it easier for developers to use and adopt -- and for consumers to choose and buy -- smart home products.

Parks Associates President Elizabeth Parks cited survey data of 10,000 internet customers saying 37% of U.S. households have a smart home device, up 1%, or 1 million homes, from six months ago. She asked what problem Matter will solve for them and for the 63% not convinced to buy smart home products.

Mindala-Freeman ticked off choice, ease of use and simplicity as the three major problems facing the smart home market. The market is growing, she said, “but shouldn’t that number be so much bigger?” She focused on users who haven’t entered the market: “How do we make smart home and smart home devices … more accessible and easier for them to adopt?”

Smart home device buyers are faced with choices and limitations when picking an ecosystem and a device that’s within the ecosystem, she said. “I like that device, but I’m not sure if it works with the thing I have,” she said, saying consumers have to do a “dance” to navigate the process. Many don’t know what to buy due to lack of interoperability and overall confusion, thinking it’s “too much trouble,” she said. CSA bills Matter as a way to “break down those walled gardens,” allowing people to choose devices they want without going through “that dance.”

Matter should remove the need for developers to deliver solutions for the various ecosystems, Mindala-Freeman said. A do-it-yourself customer at retail is looking at products in separate areas today, she said. Matter will bring to the purchase process a more straightforward and simpler experience at retail and for builders, integrators and renovators. Since Matter is a common application protocol built on IP, “you’re choosing the language of the internet” and simplifying the process so that down the road, consumers don’t have to worry about whether their investment will have continuity and whether their smart home products will be transferable when it’s time to sell their home.

Matter members at CES 2022 were “much more vocal” about their Matter efforts, said Mindala-Freeman, citing 28 member announcements. She highlighted Samsung’s commitment to Matter (see 2201050030), Google’s Fast Pair service and Frustration-Free Setup that Amazon is bringing to its toolkits to support the protocol. Matter news came from silicon providers including NXP and Silicon Labs; device-makers including Belkin with Wemo products, plus Schneider Electric, GE Lighting, LG, Via and Arlo. “A ton more stuff” will be coming out in the coming months, she said.

Parks noted Arlo is extending its reach into rural areas through its partnership with cloud platform provider Calix to bring security solutions via broadband. She said several companies are leading with an energy-first value proposition for the smart home, giving consumers a way to better understand their usage and how they can be “an active participant in saving energy.”

Standards such as Zigbee and Zigbee Smart Energy have been specified in smart metering systems globally, creating a “bridge between the transmission and distribution of electricity” and home energy use, Mindala-Freeman said. Through connectivity, consumers have information that can help them make smarter energy choices, she said, referencing investments from member companies to bring energy management use cases to Matter. That could include integration of electric vehicle charging, she said.

Mindala-Freeman said the first release of Matter has support for TVs. Capabilities will allow connectivity between smart home devices and a TV, where the set is used either as a smart home interface or in a casting role with other smart home devices. More companies with a focus on media and entertainment are joining CSA, she said, as the lines between smart home categories “are blurring,” she said. Consumers want a connected home experience, including having the TV "talk to the lighting," she said.