OREANDA-NEWS. QIVICON, Deutsche Telekom's manufacturer-independent smart home platform, continues its successful development. And Deutsche Telekom presents new partner offers and products at this year's IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin.

Fast, easy market approach
The spectrum of companies profiting from the platform's opportunities for fast, easy market approach include telecommunications companies, energy suppliers – and manufacturers of smart home devices, such as E WIE EINFACH and Bitron Video. Both companies are making use of Deutsche Telekom's complete white label offer, with the aim of offering customers smart home solutions under their own brands, within the coming months. Along with apps and compatible components, the companies are now offering their customers the new Home Base 2.0 gateway through their own distribution channels. E WIE EINFACH plans to launch its products and services in Germany and the Bitron Video manufacturer is aiming at both the Italian and French markets. Bitron Video joins Austria’s eww and Dutch KPN as the third company to market an international SmartHome offer based on the QIVICON platform.

Recognised as the most innovative Smart Home solution
The innovativeness of the smart home platform has now been highlighted by a repeat award from the international business consultancy Frost & Sullivan. Frost & Sullivan has awarded QIVICON its European Connected Home New Product Innovation Award for 2016. "The award from Frost & Sullivan confirms that Deutsche Telekom's QIVICON smart home platform, thanks to its open, manufacturer-independent approach, is currently the leading smart home ecosystem," noted Anirudh Bhaskaran, Senior Research Analyst at Frost & Sullivan. "What is more, Deutsche Telekom offers business customers a range of different partnership opportunities. For example, telecommunications companies and energy suppliers can use Deutsche Telekom's white label offer as a means of offering their own complete ranges of smart home products, and of developing the smart home market quickly and efficiently. And the manufacturer-independent-platform approach is also attractive for manufacturers of smart home devices," Bhaskaran also explained.

"These results for QIVICON are clear signs of success and growth," added Thomas Rockmann, head of Connected Home at Deutsche Telekom. "We are now partnering with over 40 companies, have presence in a range of different European countries and offer users numerous apps and components, from different manufacturers, that make home environments more secure, more comfortable and more energy-efficient," Rockmann also noted. "We plan to continue expanding our range of products and services, integrating new products and partners, and developing additional markets," he emphasized.

New QIVICON Home Base 2.0
A range of different models of the new QIVICON Home Base 2.0 will be offered this fall, in keeping with the diverse range of wireless protocols found throughout the international market. While the different models all have an identical outward appearance, they differ in terms of their pre-installed protocols. For example, the model designed for the German market, and several other markets, already includes the protocols HomeMatic, Homematic IP, ZigBee Pro and the inclusion of DECT ULE has also been completed.

Another model includes the ZigBee Pro and Z-Wave radio modules. All versions of the new Home Base 2.0 can be connected to home DSL routers either by cable or wirelessly, via Wi-Fi. In addition, users can integrate additional wireless protocols, via USB flash memories, as soon as interoperability with the QIVICON platform is assured. The Home Base 2.0 has two USB ports. And its design has been optimized to ensure aesthetic compatibility with just about any home environment.

New devices from Logitech, Netatmo and Sonos also supported
This fall, consumers will have a range of new QIVICON-compatible devices to choose from. Among these will be remote-control products in the Logitech Harmony lineup, including the Harmony Hub and the Harmony app. With these products, users can control their TV sets, lighting and heating systems and, with the help of wireless socket adapters, electrical appliances.

Netatmo's weather station is also QIVICON-compatible. The weather station displays such data as outdoor temperature, humidity, air quality and air pressure. Significantly, these devices can also be linked with other QIVICON-compatible components. When combined with light-control systems from Osram or Philips, they can perform such useful functions as turning light reddish when environmental carbon dioxide levels become too high.

About Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom is one of the world’s leading integrated telecommunications companies with more than 156 million mobile customers, 29 million fixed-network lines and around 18 million broadband lines (as of December 31, 2015). The Group provides fixed-network/broadband, mobile communications, Internet and Internet-based TV products and services for consumers, and ICT solutions for businesses and corporate customers. Deutsche Telekom has a presence in more than 50 countries and employs about 225,200 people worldwide. The Group generated revenues of 69.2 billion euros in the 2015 financial year – roughly 64 percent of it outside Germany.

About QIVICON
QIVICON, initiated by Deutsche Telekom, is an alliance of leading industrial companies in Germany that is working to develop the smart home sector. Together with its partners EnBW, eQ-3, Miele and Samsung, Deutsche Telekom is establishing a non-proprietary, multi-brand platform for the smart home sector, covering the areas of comfort and convenience, security and safety, and energy efficiency for all consumer segments. A constantly growing number of additional partner companies will also present their own smart home offerings under their own brands on the QIVICON platform. As an Eclipse Foundation member, QIVICON will also open its platform to developers and startups building ideas, apps and devices in the Eclipse SmartHome project framework. The Eclipse Foundation is one of the largest independent developer communities.