Value-added monitoring services may still be in the development stage, but recent research conducted by Parks Associates reveals that about 25 percent of U.S. households that have a broadband connection see utility in value-added monitoring services.
Respondents to the research firm's survey said that they "find at least one value-added monitoring service very appealing."
While other services could emerge, the most common that consumers would use include energy, HVAC or appliance monitoring. Interestingly, Parks said that bundling these solutions with home services increases interest in monitoring by up to 50 percent.
"The residential security market landscape is changing rapidly, creating a threat to industry incumbents and an opportunity for both new and existing players," said Tom Kerber, director, Research, Home Controls & Energy, Parks Associates, in a release.
A growing group of incumbent telco and cable operators have been stepping into the home monitoring game in recent years, with AT&T (NYSE: T) and Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) being the most aggressive players.
AT&T has been pushing out its Digital Life home monitoring services, including a series of home security and automation services such as locking and unlocking doors throughout the United States. Likewise, Comcast has been rolling out its home automation and security services in the cable markets it serves.
Besides AT&T and Comcast, Tier 2 telcos like Frontier offer home automation and security as part of the broadband bundles they offer consumers.
What's driving service providers to roll out these services is the desire to increase average revenue per user (ARPU) and reduce subscriber churn.
For more:
- see the release
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