This article originally appeared in the March 2024 issue of Security Business magazine. Don’t forget to mention Security Business magazine on LinkedIn and @SecBusinessMag on Twitter if you share it.
Following CES, we have gotten so many questions about the status of Matter, that I decided to use this column to address these concerns, as excerpted from a new report from Parks Associates, Interoperability & Generative AI: Next Generation Smart Home UI.
Technical hurdles of interoperability will continue to fade as core home networking technologies improve functionality and new networks improve flexibility in bridging connectivity scenarios; however, the disruptions of Matter and generative AI will force industry vendors to reassess their value propositions and revenue models. This will have implications for the mix of devices and services within the smart home.
The strength of the CSA coalition should already be pushing all vendors to seriously consider Matter, even if doing so offers few feature advantages at product launch, and to prepare for a day when supporting it is as commonplace as supporting Wi-Fi for a wireless home networking product. Matter will not be promoted in the way networking vendors promote support for new networking standards such as Wi-Fi 6e or Wi-Fi 7; however, Matter will enter buyer vocabularies through announcements from its powerful partners and distribution of compatible products. Consumers will increasingly expect Matter compatibility – or a path to it – for applicable home networking devices.
Nonetheless, Matter compatibility will not emerge as a leading purchase driver. For one, many consumers live largely within one ecosystem and have been served well by compatibility of devices with Google Home and Alexa. These assistants, poised for a major maturity infusion via generative AI, will meet the needs of many consumers, even for products that don’t support Matter.
For the next few years, the CSA and its ecosystem partners should focus on industry marketing, developer outreach, and leading by example. On that last front, the effort from ecosystem partners has been strong:
- Apple built support for Matter in the latest versions of its main operating systems;
- Amazon upgraded more than 100 million first-party devices in the field through a software update;
- Google rolled out support to millions of Android devices as well as many of its Nest smart home products.
All three companies offer Thread hub features in their upgraded smart speakers and displays.
Taking advantage of Matter’s heavy reuse of existing standards, these companies’ formidable distribution has created a nearly instant installed base of hundreds of millions of Matter-compatible devices that will grow rapidly. Indeed, while it has been a supply-side phenomenon, Matter may be the most rapidly deployed digital connectivity standard in history – one that will expand its footprint quickly as Apple and Google device partners continue their annual smartphone upgrade cycles.
Matter, then, is a compelling standard for device makers that cracks the classic chicken-and-egg dilemma. However, while it creates a new baseline for setup that eliminates the most awkward methods, it offers great leeway in how device makers implement setup. The upside of this is less disruption for smart home adopters and flexibility for device makers. The downside, though, is continued inconsistency across products and control interfaces. Parks Associates sees Matter as having the greatest impact on three sets of smart home devices:
- Appliances. Beyond Samsung and LG, both in the highest tier of CSA membership, many appliance companies have joined CSA, including Bosch, Haier, Whirlpool, and Dyson. Such companies have a heightened incentive to do so given the relevance of the standard to new construction.
- Device suites. For companies offering device microecosystems that include products such as lighting, smart plugs, and security cameras, Matter lowers the barriers to new competition. On the other hand, it also lowers the barrier for suite expansion into new categories.
- New entrants. While Matter improves compatibility for any product that doesn’t play across smart home platform ecosystems, it will prove particularly advantageous for resource-constrained startups. In the short term, Matter support may serve as a differentiator, but the bigger win is not having to limit compatibility at a product’s launch.
Vendors should note, however, that Matter’s enviable support is not guaranteed. While rare in consortia so broadly supported, partners could pull out. More likely, as has often happened with Wi-Fi, key functionality or approved standard variations may not be adopted. In addition, regulatory threats may threaten complete platform control; however, parties supporting such regulation would likely support playing field levelers such as Matter.
Elizabeth Parks is President and CMO of market research and consulting firm Parks Associates (www.parksassociates.com). [email protected] • (972) 490-1113
