Established Smart Home Firms Getting Stronger by Acquisitions: Parks

Veteran smart home companies are strengthening their offerings via acquisitions of smaller companies with deep expertise, said Parks Associates Tuesday, noting Resideo’s purchase of First Alert and Crestron’s buy of video technology from 1 Beyond. First Alert brought brand recognition and trust to Resideo, said analyst Jennifer Kent. Crestron gained intelligent video technology and automated camera tracking from 1 Beyond, which should help the company’s positioning in the work-from-home market, Kent said. The electric vehicle market offers opportunities for smart home companies, said the analyst, citing ADT and Ford’s joint venture for an AI-enabled security monitoring product, Canopy, that identifies and reports threats to Ford vehicles as they happen.