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30 SUPPLIERS www.securitysystemsnews.com AUGUST 2011 SUPPLIERS Comcast sells home security/ home automation with iControl By Martha Entwistle PALO ALTO, Calif.—It’s offi- cial: Comcast is selling home security and home automation services powered by iControl software in seven of its 18 mar- kets across the country. The announcement was made by iControl, which is based here, on June 9. In the works for several years, this is the first national broadband provider partner- ship that iControl has officially announced. The software pro- vider also has a major partner- ship with traditional home security company ADT, which introduced its interactive ser- vices PULSE product in Sep- tember 2010. Asked if there’s room for both channels to grow and prosper, Jim Johnson, co-CEO of iControl said yes, noting there’s only about 20 percent penetration of home security systems nationwide. He said iControl will contin- ue to work with both the broad- band and traditional security Mitch Bowling installation channels to “develop rich interac- tive solutions [that] fit into their cur- rent instal- lation and operational processes.” ADT’s requirements are different from a cable company’s require- ments, he pointed out, “and over time they’ll have differ- ent visions for how they want their customer experience to evolve.” Not surprisingly, both ADT and Comcast believe their offerings will have the most appeal to the 80 percent of the market that is not penetrated. “ADT has a 135 year track record of serving hundreds of millions of homes and busi- nesses with a high level of customer service you simply don’t see with cable and tele- com providers,” Bob Tucker, ADT spokesman told Security COMCAST see page 31 ObjectVideo files ITC complaint By Martha Entwistle RESTON, Va.—ObjectVideo, which in April filed a law- suit against Sony, Samsung and Bosch for alleged patent infringement on some of its analytics, on June 29 filed a complaint against the same companies with the Interna- tional Trade Commission. The complaint seeks to bar Bosch, Samsung and Sony from importing and selling products containing software features and func- tions that allegedly infringe on OV’s patents. “The ITC was empowered by the Tariff Act in 1930 to be a venue for quick resolution of trade disputes between domestic compa- nies doing business with foreign companies,” said Raul Fernandez, chairman and CEO of ObjectVideo. Fernandez said that there are other companies that are infringing on the patent, but OV decided to pursue these three companies because it could go after them with the ITC. “It’s a better venue for a Totally re-engineered Total Connect 2.0 By Martha Entwistle CHARLOTTE, N.C.—At the ESX show, Honeywell executives were at the booth and eager to show off Total Connect 2.0, the company’s new technology platform that allows home and business owners to remotely manage their security sys- tems and view live video via PCs, smart- phones, tablets and other web-enabled devices. Honeywell Security president Ron Rothman told Security Systems News the product meets the needs of today’s home and business owners and is archi- tected in a way to anticipate and serve the needs of tomorrow. Its two key capa- bilities are “real-time connection” and the ability to serve multiple locations. “The benefit we have is that we’re really connected; [the data is encrypted and there’s a real-time connection so] we’re totally connected end- to-end.” Ron Rothman The package includes products, software and alarm communications ser- vices “with the same look and feel,” said Gordon Hope, gen- eral manager of Honeywell’s AlarmNet business. Hope demoed the platform and noted that it’s “totally reengineered and revamped.” He said: “We chal- lenged ourselves to develop a world- class human interface, which can sup- port multiple applications, when we didn’t even know what those applica- tions would be ... and we believe we’ve achieved that.” TOTAL see page 32 small player. It allows you to expedite the process.” The ITC process still will take 12 to 16 months “for the full airing of all sides,” he said. And while an ITC ruling would be a “ruling on patents [not a] ruling on damages or ongoing roy- alties,” ObjectVideo fully intends to seek “an econom- ic solution,” he said. Fernandez believes that action from the ITC would also expedite an agreement on roy- alties and damages. “The U.S. is an Raul Fernandez important enough market that if there is a likelihood that a core product would be excluded from [being sold here, we believe that would] bring the party to the table for negotiations.” ObjectVideo has royalty arrangements with camera maker Mirasys and another private company. Fernandez said he’s been approached by other companies about roy- alty arrangements. Bosch Samsung and Sony declined to comment. SSN iControl BRIEFS PSIA elects chair, vice chair ANTA CLARA, Calif.—The Physical Security Interoperability Alliance (PSIA), a global consortium of physical secu- rity providers focused on promoting the interoperability of IP-enabled devices, in June announced it has elected Larry Lien of Proximex as its new chairman and Marine Drive of Honeywell as vice chairman. “We are pleased to have two extreme- ly strong individuals help lead our initia- tives and serve as advocates for interop- erability in the security industry,” said David Bunzel, executive director, PSIA. “The combined business and techni- cal expertise from Larry and Marine will allow the PSIA to maintain momentum in achieving widespread market adop- tion of the group’s specifications.” Tri-Ed / No. Video goes to N.Y. WOODBURY, N.Y.—Tri-Ed / Northern Video Distribution announce in July that its expanded its North American foot- print in Elmsford, N.Y. The new branch will be managed by industry vet Leo De Lucca. Mike Mullen also joins the staff as sales associate. The branch is fully stocked and oper- ational and features a showroom to dis- play Tri-Ed / Northern Videos’ inventory of security and sound and communica- tions products. “Tri-Ed / Northern Video continues to expand at a rapid pace,” said president and COO Pat Comunale in a prepared statement. “Our product lines and U.S. presence continue to grow, and we are pleased to offer cus- tomers another conveniently located branch to serve them.” Pixim acquires gets $50m Funds will speed up availability of platform, energy management apps By Martha Entwistle PALO ALTO, Calif.—IControl co-CEOs Jim Johnson and Paul Dawes said they were originally looking for a $30 million invest- ment, but there was so much interest that they got $50 million. They even turned away some investors whose interests didn’t align with iControl’s strategy, they said. “There was more interest in investing than we anticipated,” Dawes told SSN on June 20. The success of the round is due to the successful roll out of ADT’s Pulse product, the recent iControl/Comcast XFINITY partnership announcement, and the fact that the investment community is getting ICONTROL see page 32 Advasense MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.—Pixim Inc., a provider of imaging chips for enter- prise security cameras, announced in June the acquisition of Advasense Technologies, Ltd., a developer of next generation CMOS image sensor tech- nology located in Ra’anana Israel. Advasense was founded with the vision of improving the image quality of cameras used in mobile applications, according to a company release. The company has since deployed several high-resolution image sensors requiring ever-smaller pixel sizes. The Advasense team complements Pixim in the areas of image sensor-spe- cific product design and will be imme- diately integrated into Pixim’s existing product development organization. Pixim said the current push for higher resolution cameras in the video security market demands higher-performance small pixels that do not compromise image quality, and Advasense’s devel- opment of deep photodiodes signifi- cantly enhances pixel well capacity, improving image quality. SECURITY SYSTEMS NEWS