In another clear sign that the wireless business is not just about phones and tablets anymore, AT&T today announced a new portfolio of digital home security and automation products. Called Digital Life, the new suite of IP-based products sold in AT&T stores will include cameras, smoke detectors, thermostats and door locks. Digital Life will launch this summer in Atlanta and Dallas, allowing customers in two of the nation’s hottest cities the chance to turn down their thermostats before they head home at the end of the day. AT&T says users will be able to control their Digital Life products remotely using any connected device, regardless of the wireless carrier.
Mobile broadband is part of the Digital Life offering, as is Wi-Fi connectivity. Like Verizon’s competing home monitoring product, Digital Life will support the home automation protocol called Z Wave.
As the mobile phone business becomes increasingly competitive and mature, carriers are working to enter the M2M, or machine-to-machine market. ABI Research estimates that there are currently 110 million M2M connections in the United States, and that this number will grow to 364 million by 2016.
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