Control4’s a Different Category From Online DIY, Says CEO
Control4 CEO Martin Plaehn countered analysts’ views at an investor conference last week suggesting recent volatility in Control4 shares is due to larger do-it-yourself smart home players -- Amazon, in particular -- dialing up the volume on smart home advertising.…
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"More and more products are becoming connected, and some of those products will be aftermarket products” that consumers can buy online or through retailers, but those are in a “different category from where we are,” he said. Control4 provides a connected infrastructure for the home, Plaehn said. Customers who try to tackle the smart home by themselves could become frustrated when commands don’t result in a desired response, said Plaehn, describing a scenario where a customer tells a device to raise the temperature and nothing happens. “Is Amazon going to come out and fix your heating system?” The average Control4 home has 41 devices, he said. The company’s open platform “interoperates with everybody,” the executive said, citing the 12,000 third-party products that integrate with its Simple Device Discovery Protocol. That’s different from companies that sell $99-$200 smart home hubs and say to the consumer: “Go figure it out,” he said. Control4 traded at a 52-week high of $37.62 in July; shares closed Monday at $20.