Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/37034
12 EDITORIAL www.securitysystemsnews.com AUGUST 2011 EDITORIAL What are you waiting for? T HERE’S BEEN TALK of security installers adding more RMR via home automation ser- vices for years, but it appears that security companies not only offering, but actually installing, home automation services, is really finally com- ing of age. Several stories this month touch on this topic. Honeywell announced a “totally re- engineered Total Connect” (see page 30); DICE Corporation has augmented its cen- tral station automation platform to make it easier for home automation to integrate with security solutions; and, in this month’s “How I Use My System,” Ric Gibbey of CPI Secu- rity talks about how practical home automa- tion services are with his family at home. Additionally, the MarketTrends report (see page 20) is about home automation. One installing company, Vivint, reports that 55 percent of new customers this year are opting to include upgraded services such as energy management. And, according to research by ESA, which was presented at the ESX show in Charlotte in June, more and more customers may opt for home automation features first and security systems second. That’s something that makes sense to people like me, who live in small towns and who are not afraid of criminals breaking into their homes. We might not be worried about high crime, but most of us still lock our doors. If the security systems has features like automatic locks, or remote access to other systems it’s suddenly more appeal- ing to some people than a plain old secu- rity system. Martha Entwistle Most read stories at www.securitysystemsnews.com from June 3 to July 3, 2011 Tyco looks to acquire Visonic ■ ■ Comcast sells home security/home automation with iControl ■ ■ ■ Meet the Class of 2011: 20 under 40 Totally re-engineered Total Connect 2.0 Devcon goes national Sell Your Business or Accounts To Us or Our Buyers – NOW! CLIENTS: • TnT Security • P.A.C. Systems, Inc • Abbott Security & Fire • Alpha Burglar & Fire Alarm Systems Call for Prompt Personal Service (800) 354-FUND (3863) Visit www.afssmartfunding.com ■ Stanley makes $1.2 billion cash bid for Niscayah ■ New UTC Fire & Security Global Security Products president outlines goals ■ ■ iControl gets $50m Iverify’s new $39m deal And saving money on energy costs should be of interest to anyone in a small town in New England who uses oil to heat their home. So, the proliferation of home automation services is the good news. The not-so-good news is that there’s trepidation among many installers about jumping into offering home automation services. Now, home automation may simply not fit into your busi- ness model. But if you haven’t checked out the different fea- tures that you can offer recently, now’s the time. There are a lot of homes out there with- out home automation and without secu- rity systems. And you can be the trusted supplier of both. SSN SECURITY SYSTEMS NEWS Tim Purpura, PUBLISHER tpurpura@securitysystemsnews.com Brook Taliaferro, EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Martha Entwistle, EDITOR mentwistle@securitysystemsnews.com Daniel Gelinas, MANAGING EDITOR dgelinas@securitysystemsnews.com Tess Nacelewicz, ASSOCIATE EDITOR tnacelewicz@securitysystemsnews.com Peter Macijauskas, E-MEDIA MANAGER pmacijauskas@unitedpublications.com SEND PRESS RELEASES TO: EDITORIAL OFFICE editor@securitysystemsnews.com Tel: 207.846.0600 Fax: 207.846.0657 ADVERTISING OFFICE Security Systems News 106 Lafayette St., PO Box 998 Yarmouth, ME 04096 Tel: 207.846.0600 Fax: 207.846.0657 EAST Tim Purpura, PUBLISHER Tel: 207.846.0600, ext. 217 Fax: 207.846.0657 tpurpura@securitysystemsnews.com WEST Gregg Shapiro, ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Tel: 207.846.0600, ext. 273 Fax: 207.846.0657 gshapiro@securitysystemsnews.com MARKETPLACE & LIST RENTALS Cath Daggett Tel: 207.846.0600, ext. 300 Fax: 207.846.0657 cdaggett@securitysystemsnews.com Glen Halliday, PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Brenda Boothby, CIRCULATION DIRECTOR EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Bill Bozeman, CEO/President PSA Security Network Daniel G. Decker, President Safety Systems Inc. John Mack III, CEO Imperial Capital Jack Mallon, Managing Director Mallon & Associates Dave Merrick, Marketing Director Vector Security Peter A. Michel, CEO iSECURETrac Richard Perry, President Security Networks LLC Lisa Prosser, Owner/President General Alarm Inc. Tony Smith, President Security Finance Associates Greg Spurr, Vice President TD Bank, N.A. Tony Wilson, President CMS SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION www.securitysystemsnews.com/subscribe Security Systems News PO Box 1742 Lowell, MA 01853-1742 Tel: 978-671-0449 Publishers of specialized business publications PRESIDENT & CEO J. G. Taliaferro, Jr. VICE PRESIDENT Rick Rector For quality article reprints of 250 copies or more, call PARS International Corp. at 212-221-9595 or email reprints@parsintl.com. Call Rory Russell at AFS Now!