CE Pro March 2024 - 9

automations as needed.
" Software capabilities
have gotten to a point
where they allow us to
enhance the system that's
installed today over the next
decade of ownership like
never before. That's a really
important thing - it's no
longer just hardware that
improves those experiences, "
Heyman explains to CE Pro.
" Product interoperability
is becoming more important
with all the devices coming
into the home. It's not just
the interoperability, it's the
proliferation of those devices
that are trying to operate
together. "
Snap One's Essential
Control4 Connect Is
Core Software
Starting on April 23,
Control4 Connect will be
required for all new U.S.
Control4 systems. For systems
installed prior to that
date, 4Sight continues to be
available.
The Control4 Connect
software service enables
essential features that keep
customers' systems up to
date and secure, provides
convenient access and insights,
and ensures smooth
integration with new
devices as they are released,
according to Snap One.
The software provides
system control and functionality,
while delivering
" in-demand smart living features
such as voice control,
remote access, Intercom
Anywhere, When >>Then
scene programming, system
backups, on-the-go visibility
and personalization of noticepro.com
The
clients pay for the Connect service directly in the
Control4 app upon registration of their new system.
The annual customer
cost for Connect will vary
depending on the type of
controller installed. Systems
with a CA-1 model are free
of charge, systems with a
Core Lite unit cost $99, and
systems with any other controller,
or multiple controllers,
cost $249.
Control4 dealers will
receive a " generous revenue
share " paid monthly over 12
months by direct wire payment
- what the company
ensure the industry evolves
in a way for integrators to
protect their own health
through software, " Heyman
remarks to CE Pro.
Integrators
Enthusiastic About
New Connect &
Assist Potential
Early feedback from the Control4
services' beta testers
was overwhelmingly positive,
the company reports.
" Control4 Assist helps
fication for mobile devices, "
the company details.
Control4 Connect enables
Control4 dealers to
produce multiple recurring
revenue streams that they
don't have to manage:
clients pay for the service
directly in the Control4 app
upon registration of their
new system, allowing Snap
One to manage billing and
payment. There's no website
to develop, no software
to learn, and no records
to manage, the company
emphasizes.
says amounts to a significant
change from the $30
product credit previously
offered through 4Sight.
There will be no changes
required for existing Control4
customers or 4Sight
subscribers, but certain software
improvements will only
be made available to active
Control4 Connect accounts.
" The hardware required
today to implement and
install generally costs less,
or less of it's required, than
just five years ago, so that's
something that we have to
my technicians to not have
to field calls for simple
matters during the workday,
after hours and over
the weekends, " says Chris
Bell of Bell Integrated Home
Solutions. " It helps my techs
stay focused on their daily
task at hand and allows for
uninterrupted after hours,
weekend and family time for
non-emergency situations. "
Ed Gilmore of Gilmore's
Sound Advice says the
potential blowback from
customers about the prospect
of paying for a CIaaS
subscription has been a
non-factor.
" In discussing Connect
with my clients, there has
not been a single client
that has reacted negatively
to it. They all understand
the world is evolving and
changing. They all understand
software-as-a-service
models. This is presented to
them daily, " he says.
" I think they're a little
comforted by the fact that
a manufacturer takes their
product seriously enough
that they're going to maintain
and support it through
software. "
Adds Snap One dealer
Johnathan George of iWired
(now Vangeo Technology
Group), " I believe that
Connect and Assist are the
first steps forward for integrators
to begin to change
their business models from
the ground up - to no longer
think about individual
projects, but to think about
ongoing lifetime value, and
creating lifetime value with
the customer base that they
serve every single day. "
March 2024 CE Pro | 9
COURTESY OF SNAP ONE
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CE Pro March 2024

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