ADT, iControl partner for interactive home monitoring services

BOCA RATON, Fla.--ADT Security Services, a provider of electronic security systems, on Jan. 9 announced a partnership with iControl Networks that will allow ADT to offer its customers a new, as-yet-unnamed, interactive services solution.

The agreement will incorporate iControl's next-generation platform, which iControl calls Home Security 2.0, into ADT's monitoring network to provide ADT home and business customers with life safety, lifestyle and productivity service enhancements.

"ADT customers will soon be able to remotely control their security systems and much more," said Don Boerema, ADT's chief marketing officer in a statement. "In an office, while on vacation, or from virtually anywhere in the world where there's access to the Internet, users can conveniently manage their homes or businesses, saving time and money."

Greg Roberts, vice president of marketing at iControl, said that the partnership promised powerful new layers of control that ADT dealers can offer to end users. "This is a solution that encompasses a number of different technologies that cater specifically to the home security industry in addition to the broadband and telco industries as they are now getting into the home security space," Roberts said. "It really delivers three main components that layer on top of a traditional monitored home security solution. One, it offers a safer solution to the end user. Traditional home security offers the wonderful consumer benefit of peace of mind. Layering technology enhances that peace of mind proposition in a number of ways. Another component is connectivity--being connected to the home. Today, that is a consumer need that is not met. This platform, because of its broadband connectivity, allows customers to stay connected to their home and family anywhere in the world via web or mobile phone. And the third component of this is simplicity. The user interfaces that I've just mentioned--Web, mobile, iPhone application--all have to be very easy to use, very intuitive, and we've spent a significant amount of time ensuring that the user experience for this solution is as good as it can possibly get from a simplicity standpoint."

ADT's personalized solution will integrate security, energy and lighting control, live video, event-driven video clips, pictures and a host of other functions. Through an easy-to-use, personalized Web site or a Web-enabled mobile phone or PDA, ADT customers will have remote control and access of their expanded ADT security system. "With all of that connectivity you can now add various features and functionality onto the traditional home security system, including IP cameras," Roberts said "So you can now see live video or set the system to take video clips or pictures when events occur, like when doors are opened or when motion sensors go off. It also allows for home management functionality--thermostats, lighting control and so forth. So now from a mobile phone or Web portal, you can control ... a host of functionality that will be added to the platform."

In a statement, Boerema said ADT plans to announce additional partnerships over the next few months as the company continues to build on this platform to broaden the services it intends to offer customers.