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Voice-control systems such as Amazon Alexa, Google Home and Apple HomePod will be popular smart-home purchases this 2017 holiday season ... but not as popular as video doorbells.

IoT research firm Parks Associates says 9% of U.S. broadband households report "high intentions" to purchase a voice-enabled system over the holidays, compared to 14% who plan to buy a smart doorbell.

The popularity of Wi-Fi doorbells could put the category on pace to drive "similar adoption lev ...read more

One chief reason for the meteoric rise in DIY competition, of course, is market penetration — read: the historical lack thereof. According to the latest Parks Associates research, 75% of U.S. households have no security alarm system. Among security system owners, 19% contract for professional monitoring.

From the article "DIY Security, Home Automation: What’s a Pro to Do?" by Rodney Bosch.

Why are integrators important to Amazon? Quigley calls custom integrators “the new architects” of the smart home.

He cites data from Parks Associates that even though 60 percent of consumers say they will self-install smart home products, the majority of those consumers prefer to have someone else install the products for them.

From the article "Amazon Details ‘Custom Home Service’ Featuring CEDIA Smart Home Pros" by Jason Knott.

It takes a lot of time and money to acquire a customer, so once you have them, you better keep them. How can you do that if you only talk to them when they have a problem?

Consumer engagement was a big topic of discussion at the recent Connections Conference, the annual IoT event produced by Parks Associates. The topic has always been a “thing” to the security industry, where subscription renewals are paramount and companies attach home-automation devices to engender “sticki ...read more

The rising occurrence of high-profile security hacks and privacy breaches, as well as being personally victimized, are contributing to ever-increasing consumer anxiety about smart home devices and platforms, according to new research.

Parks Associates’ latest quarterly survey of 10,000 U.S. broadband households found that almost half of consumers rank data security and privacy issues as their greatest concerns about connecting devices to the Internet, compared to other probl ...read more

Parks Associates research indicates 40 percent of U.S. smartphone owners use voice-recognition software, generally eclipsing the use of phones for streaming music to speakers or video to a second screen.

From the article "Top 5 Home Tech Trends and Opportunities for 2017: From Voice Control to VR" by Julie Jacobson.

As for why dealers change their offerings, there are many possibilities. According to the Parks and SSI study, competitive forces are key. It could also be driven by the consumer, as more homeowners are becoming aware of smart home options ... and asking for them.

Solid margins, customer demand, competitive parity and new products all combine to increase product adoption in some areas, with opposite factors such as low margins and sated consumer demand causing the easing out ...read more

Residential integrators might be shocked to consider the recently reported research from Parks Associates showing that consumers in broadband-enabled households rank service contractors as their sixth choice to recommend and purchase smart home systems, just between utility providers and HVAC contractors.

From the article "Want To Build A Strong Social Media Presence? Follow These 10 Steps" by Coleen Sterns.