Strong growth is expected for the smart connected home appliance market in the next five years, according to IHS. In fact many appliance makers are already shifting focus from low-profit, low-growth traditional (non-smart) products, toward the emerging high-margin, revenue-oriented smart connected appliance market.
The global smart connected white-goods market is forecast to grow at a five-year CAGR of 134%, from fewer than one million units shipped in 2014 to more than 223 million units by 2020. The appliance types covered in this research include washing machines, clothes dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators, room air-conditioners and large cooking appliances. If other types of connected home appliances are included – like coffee machines, robotic vacuums, rice cookers, microwave ovens, air-purifiers, and electric toothbrushes – the total addressable smart connected home-appliance market is forecast to reach 700 million units worldwide by 2020.
There are three critical factors that will affect smart appliance adoption: energy management initiatives, such as dynamic pricing, government initiatives and structure of utilities; standards for interoperability; and other marketplace dynamics covering product pricing, retail environment, competitive landscape, the approaches adopted by suppliers and overall interest in smart home technology.
Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and other consumer electronics giants vying for first-mover advantage have shifted their focus from mobile devices, TV and other saturated businesses, to smart home technology devices. Electronics giants could also benefit from the convergence of mobile devices and TVs with their home appliance business lines, as all of these devices can integrate well with smart technologies, IHS said.
In the next 2-3 years, the smart home technology market is expected to consolidate, and by 2018 there will be just a couple of connectivity platforms, operating systems and a small number of technology-oriented appliance companies dominating the market. The recent announcement that ZigBee is partnering with Thread is one such example, IHS added.
Article translated by Alex Wolfgram
