Dec 8 2009
Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/110fea/wireless_lighting) has announced the addition of the "Wireless Lighting Control IP & Litigation" report to their offering.
Intellectual Property Creates Barriers to Entry into Wireless Lighting Control Market
This new report evaluates intellectual property ownership, protection strategies and the impact on the market growth for Wireless Lighting Control technologies.
A common perception is that Wireless Lighting Control provides a large green-field opportunity to new market entrants. Conventional analysis often overlooks the impact Intellectual Property management activities by existing market participants.
"Lutron Electronics Inc. is one of the major incumbents in this market space and enjoys a long history of licensing, managing and protecting its significant IP portfolio," according to Kirsten West, PhD, Principal Analyst with WTRS. "Companies developing products for this market often overlook the prior art held by Lutron and other market participants."
This report analyzes the IP holdings and IP protection strategies employed by industry incumbent Lutron in the residential wireless lighting control market.
Home automation has been on the verge of mass adoption for several decades. One of the reasons that it has not grown substantially as a market lies with the IP protection activities of Lutron Electronics. This report analyzes the effect of litigation activities and IP protection strategies on the adoption of RF-only home control, or residential wireless control network, technologies. The report also documents the issues surrounding patent protection activities of key players in this market.
As the nascent Home Automation market matures and new products and vendors emerge, it is likely that Lutron will continue to engage in intellectual property protection activities. Based on recent activities, it appears that Lutron Electronics is focused on companies implementing ZigBee lighting profiles to produce end products, as well as those producing other lighting control products.
Countries Covered: United States
* Report includes one hour consulting *
Home automation has been on the verge of mass adoption for several decades. One of the reasons that it has not grown substantially as a market lies with the IP protection activities of Luton Electronics. This report analyzes the effect of litigation activities and IP protection strategies on the adoption of RF-only home control, or residential wireless control network, technologies. The report also documents the issues surrounding patent protection activities of key players in this market.
Today penetration of wireless into home automation technologies consist predominantly of a series of parallel and independent networks that control lighting, appliances, HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), entertainment systems, communication systems, data systems, and security systems.
The wireless technologies in play in the home automation market include Lutron's RadioRA, Smarthome's INSTEON, ZigBee/802.15.4, Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Wi-Fi, and 433MHz short-range proprietary technologies. ZigBee, 802.15.4, and INSTEON predominantly take on lighting and appliance control functions but are also found in or applicable to audio/visual, security, landscaping, healthcare, and other applications. Bluetooth offers a link to the outside world (Internet) for computers as it is extended to higher data rates and in this sense can compete with Wi-Fi in some cases. Products based on the predominantly proprietary 433MHz wireless technology is generally used in garage door openers and home security systems that have in the past also had limited control over lighting systems.
The typical inhibitors of the adoption of home automation technologies are usually identified as low reliability, high cost, difficult installation and use, as well as the absence of an easily identifiable end customer value proposition. A previously unidentified risk to technology adoption is the control of key intellectual property assets covering wireless solutions by Luton Electronics.
Luton Electronics has a history of both licensing its intellectual property as well as successfully litigating those who infringe on patents. The risk to companies developing products in this market lies in overlooking potential issues from existing prior art owned by Lutron.
Source: http://www.researchandmarkets.com/