Providing market intelligence for more than 35 years

In The News

Smart thermostats are tough sell, but ComEd hopes rebates boost interest

A study released this month by Parks Associates found only 18 percent of consumers would buy a smart thermostat at $250, but offering a $100 rebate more than doubled the pool of interested buyers.

"The market for smart thermostats is still in the early adopter phase," said Tom Kerber, director of internet of things strategy for Parks Associates, a Texas-based consumer technology research and consulting company. "To move beyond early adopters, they have to offer products at a lower price point."

Kerber said prices for the first-generation smart thermostats started at about $400 but have dropped to about $250 for Nest and other leading products. He said breaking through the $150 price point opens it up to a broader market.

From the article "Smart thermostats are tough sell, but ComEd hopes rebates boost interest" by Robert Channick.

Previously In The News

AT&T's DirecTV Now Is A Big Bundle When Consumers Want Skinny

DirecTV Now, something of an online replica of AT&T's satellite offering, will face more competition than its analog ever had on land. There's the genuinely skinny bundle of Dish Network's (DISH) Slin...

Most Broadband Homes Have Pay-TV and OTT Subscriptions

More than half of all U.S. homes with broadband subscribe to both a pay-TV service and at least one over-the-top video service, according to a new study by Parks Associates. In its OTT Video & TV E...

Home, Where the Smart Is

While the home is shaping up to be the battleground, cable operators and other service providers are jostling to position themselves as the aggregation and management point of this emerging class of s...

Netflix Prods HBO to Go 'Binge-First' With New Seasons of Original Shows

No longer would HBO be reliant on a broadband operator to deliver Game of Thrones, The Sopranos or Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. (HBO does distribute directly to consumers via streaming service...