Executive Thought Leadership

What Will Be the Killer App in the Connected Home?

Consumer technological innovations rarely meet widespread acceptance until a popular, or "killer," application emerges. An ingenious software program called VisiCalc spurred PC sales 25 years ago. And Netscape's user-friendly browser helped to transform the Internet from a government apparatus to the ubiquitous World Wide Web.

We are on the threshold of the next consumer technological innovation, the "Connected Home," in which users will easily share resources like files, printers, and storage as well as both public content like games, music, and movies and personal content like home movies and photos. Consumers are blending communications and entertainment like never before.

The Connected Home is an evolving innovation, with roots in broadband Internet connectivity and wireless home networking. Five years ago, only a few homes were wirelessly networked. Today, high-quality consumer-grade wireless routers are extremely affordable and widely available. By 2008, approximately 35 million U.S. homes will have wireless local-area networks, according to research-firm IDC.

Standards for the Connected Home

Now we're seeing a third trend: the proliferation of digital multimedia content, such as streaming audio and video. Wireless home networks are largely up to the task of handling the bandwidth required to stream audio and video, but the devices, services, and channels for multimedia home networking still have to mesh in some ways before consumers can enjoy the true potential of the Connected Home. The introduction of the 802.11n standard for wireless networks, also known as Wireless-N, will help with the speeds and range required for a truly connected home, but more important is ensuring a seamless and consistent experience for consumers using connected devices on the home network.

That's why we predict that over the next few years, the devices, services, and applications for the Connected Home will standardize around an open source, Internet Protocol (IP)-based network capable of connecting virtually all the technology that resides in the home—telephones, televisions, set-top boxes, gaming platforms, video sources, security and monitoring systems, music players, smart appliances, printers, data-storage devices, and heating and cooling systems. Consumers will be able to easily access content and services, no matter where they reside on the network or where the user is located—at home, at work, or on the move.

A Series of "Lethal Apps"

Of course, consumers are notoriously resistant to new technology. They're already confused by the myriad choices in Internet service, bigscreen high-definition TVs, DVD and DVR players, gaming platforms, wireless standards, telephone options, and so on. Most consumers won't readily adopt any technology, unless a killer app emerges that compels them to do so.

So what will be the killer app for the Connected Home? The answer is it depends. The Connected Home is fundamentally about personalization. The ability to access, purchase, or share your favorite content with anyone, anywhere, anytime. There simply can't be a single killer app.

Rather, the compelling application will be different for every household—realistically, for every individual within a household—depending on each user's interests, wants, and needs. Although we won't see a single killer app, we are already witnessing a series of "lethal apps," ready to push the Connected Home into the mainstream. These include:

Digital photo management: Digital photography has fueled the home printer market, and now it's poised to lend momentum to the Connected Home. Enthusiasts will be able to not only just print from anywhere in the house, but access, edit, and print photos anywhere, even using TV screens. Expect to see printing technology embedded in plasma TVs, allowing users to access their digital photo albums or even pause a television show and print a picture of what's on the screen.

• Entertainment management: Using a browser-based interface on a wireless device, PC, or TV screen, consumers will be able to manage all their audio and video content connected to their home entertainment centers. Theoretically, users could access and view any movie ever made by simply downloading it to their home network. At their convenience, users will easily be able to provision, change, manage, and pay for various services on demand.

• Remote home management: The technology exists now to set up a TV recording over an Internet connection or to remotely turn on the heat at home before leaving the office at the end of the work day. In the future, this will be expanded to include many common home appliances such as stoves and refrigerators.

• Video phone calls: We're already seeing low-cost or free IP-based telephone videoconferencing services. Why not bring videoconferencing to the big screen? Real-time collaboration will be enhanced when your television doubles as a videoconferencing center, whether for personal use or teleworking applications across secure virtual private networks.

• Home security systems: Being able to view a local closed-circuit TV system from a distance enables people who aren't physically present to go online to check the status of their property, look in on a sleeping baby, or monitor the family pool.

• Mobile communications: Increasingly, people are seeking to carry a single mobile device for their voice, messaging, and data needs. Voice service providers are now using broadband home connections to integrate voice, video, data, and entertainment on mobile communication devices.

Just the Beginning

These are just a few examples of the many applications and services that will take advantage of intelligent, adaptive networks in the home. We at Cisco believe a standards-based IP network is best suited for the integration of these disparate hardware, software, and communication technologies. In the years to come, look for a wealth of new Connected Home solutions, as varied and unique as the families and individuals who use them.