Control4 Builds Remote Management Capability Into Routers in No-Recurring Fee Model
Control4 integrated BakPak management software with Pakedge RK-1 routers, enabling integrators to offer homeowners a monitored, intelligent home network without monthly fees, said the company in a Wednesday announcement. BakPak manages the IP network and smart home devices, and delivers…
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real-time visibility into network health so dealers can diagnose and troubleshoot issues “before problems happen,” said Control4. Dealers can minimize downtime, service calls and inconvenience to customers by monitoring their clients’ systems remotely, it said. Having remote management software available on both the Pakedge RK-1 router and NK-1 wireless controller means dealers don’t have to “justify a monthly bill to their customers” or absorb recurring monitoring fees as a cost-of-doing business to provide customer service for home networks and automation systems, said the company. That issue has dogged the home control industry as integrators have looked for ways to bring in additional revenue from monthly monitoring fees while not incurring higher costs in the process. At a Home Technology Specialists of America meeting last spring (see 1604070049), Control4 CEO Martin Plaehn told dealers a recurring revenue contract is a financial insurance policy that works for dealers only “if the income is higher than the service.” Plaehn referred at the time to the “portfolio effect.” If a dealer signs up three $5,000-per-year service customers, “I have a hard time making $15,000 a year work because the guy you’re sending out is making $65,000,” he said. The RK-1 router, preconfigured with BakPak to manage and monitor an unlimited number of connected devices, is $750, with no license or subscription fees, and existing customers with an RK-1 router can upgrade to BakPak without additional license fees, said the company. The Pakedge NK-1 wireless access-point controller ($500) also supports BakPak, and existing homes running the NK-1 can receive a BakPak firmware update without additional license fees, it said.