Strategy Analytics tipped global spending on smart home systems to rebound in 2021 as consumers push ahead with installations postponed during the height of the Covid-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.
The company predicted spending would increase 44 per cent year-on-year to $123 billion after falling short of the $100 billion-mark in 2020. In 2019, spending stood at around $103 billion, Strategy Analytics figures showed.
It expected pent up demand from 30 million households to be a driver of growth this year, with North America expected to account for 40 per cent of spending, Asia-Pacific 29 per cent and Western Europe 18 per cent.
Strategy Analytics highlighted security systems as dominating in the US and Western Europe, with customers spending on surveillance cameras, smart bulbs and electrical devices.
Its research found Asia-Pacific has more smart homes, but spending per household was half that of the US. It predicted 1 billion homes in the region would be kitted out by the end of the decade.
In the shorter term, spending was forecast to grow to $173 billion in 2025, with nearly 20 per cent of all households globally using one smart home product. This would mark a 5 per cent rise from the end of 2021.
Director of Strategy Analytics Smart Home Strategies Advisory Service, Bill Ablondi, said the market was recovering from the economic and social distancing impacts of the pandemic and consumers were now “seeking ways to improve their homes”.
