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Zigbee Alliance to Promote IP-Based Convergence for the Commercial Market

Nov. 19, 2020

Major industry players form the Project Connected Home over IP Commercial Strategy Group to promote the standard and define commercial use cases.

David Maliniak

Having established itself as the guardian of open, global standards for the Internet of Things (IoT), the Zigbee Alliance is turning its sights on promoting the standard in commercial markets. To that end, the Alliance has formed a team within its Project Connected Home over IP initiative to develop and promote the adoption of a new, royalty-free connectivity standard, which it hopes will simplify development for manufacturers and increase compatibility for customers and consumers.

The standard is targeting devices across the IoT spectrum in categories such as lighting and electrical, HVAC controls, access control, safety and security, window coverings/shades, TVs, access points, bridges, and others. It’s meant to address many of the needs of the high-growth commercial buildings category, where the installed base of connected devices is expected to grow from 1.7 billion in 2020 to nearly 3 billion by 2025.

From multi-tenant residential buildings, offices, and hotels; to supermarkets, warehouses and retail malls, many smart-home use cases that the Project will address at launch also have wide applicability across the commercial landscape. The standard is well-suited to commercial applications as it is being built on market-proven solutions and best practices from major technologies to ensure secure, scalable architectures. Of particular importance, the Project is based on an IP networking foundation, which enables the reuse of flexible and familiar connectivity options.

To ensure commercial implementers can make the best use of the initiative, to date more than 50 companies with commercial-focused offerings, including Allegion, DSP Group, DSR Corporation, Latch, Legrand, MMB Networks, Nordic Semiconductor, NXP Semiconductors, OSRAM, Qorvo, Schneider Electric, Signify, Silicon Labs, Somfy, and ubisys, have aligned to form the Project’s Commercial Strategy Group. With a charter to support development and promote the use of the standard within the commercial industry, this team will:

Clarify the commercial use cases that can readily be supported by the Project’s initial specification;
Define the new features required for additional commercial use cases;
Facilitate conversation and collaboration among members to strengthen use and adoption of IP-based connectivity standards in the commercial market globally; and
Advocate and encourage others to join and contribute to this market-leading effort.

The recently formed Commercial Strategy Group includes global commercial leaders from various industries and geographies and continues to chart next steps to converge on IP-based connectivity within buildings and facilities. This is an open group; new members are welcome and encouraged to join, contribute, and represent their applications and markets in the important conversations happening now. Companies interested in joining this Working Group can apply for Zigbee Alliance membership here – or contact [email protected] for more information.

Zigbee Alliance, www.zigbeealliance.org

About the Author

David Maliniak | Executive Editor, Microwaves & RF

I am Executive Editor of Microwaves & RF, an all-digital publication that broadly covers all aspects of wireless communications. More particularly, we're keeping a close eye on technologies in the consumer-oriented 5G, 6G, IoT, M2M, and V2X markets, in which much of the wireless market's growth will occur in this decade and beyond. I work with a great team of editors to provide engineers, developers, and technical managers with interesting and useful articles and videos on a regular basis. Check out our free newsletters to see the latest content.

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About me:

In his long career in the B2B electronics-industry media, David Maliniak has held editorial roles as both generalist and specialist. As Components Editor and, later, as Editor in Chief of EE Product News, David gained breadth of experience in covering the industry at large. In serving as EDA/Test and Measurement Technology Editor at Electronic Design, he developed deep insight into those complex areas of technology. Most recently, David worked in technical marketing communications at Teledyne LeCroy, leaving to rejoin the EOEM B2B publishing world in January 2020. David earned a B.A. in journalism at New York University.