Smart home installations total 0.44m globally in 2010, and are set to growth further-- reaching 5.38m by 2015 with a CAGR of 65%, according to Berg Insight.

Revenues will also grow-- from 2010's total of $2.3Bn to almost $9.5Bn in 2015, growing at a CAGR of 32.8%.

Berg Insight says times are changing for the automation industry, thanks to "...a perfect confluence of market, regulatory, strategic and technology trends”, with the days of smart and connected home technologies as the reserve for the very affluent and technophiles soon coming to a close.

The WW percentage of mainstream homes in 2010 with any form of automation amounts to 0.1%-- a number set to grow to almost 4%, according to Berg.

Current consumers want to use their devices-- smartphones and tablets-- to control their lifestyles via user-friendly interfaces, while governments push for better power generation, distribution and consumption in residences.

Broadband providers and their likes, seeking to increase ARPU, become complete solution providers through their solutions.

Technology-wise, manufacturers are focusing on interoperability, as module, chipset and software costs trend downwards. Vendors are also focusing on easy-to-deploy technologies (such as wireless) ideal for the retrofitting of existing housing (tying in with the current WW slummp in new housing construction).

Berg Insight predicts dealer-installers from traditional industries (such as security service providers) could soon crowd the market, together with entrants such as broadband, wireless and utility service providers-- meaning success will come through the right partnerships, business models and pricing.

Go Berg Insight