The Home Automation and Control market is expected to grow at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 11.36% over the next five years (2014 - 2020) and worth approximately $12.81 billion by 2020, According to a new market research report published by MarketsandMarket. North America is expected to remain the largest market over this period supported by the growth in the housing martket and consumers demands for convenience, connectivity, safety and security in their homes.

Landis+Gyr has further solified its position in the South American smart grid market by partnering with Brazilian electricity utility Light in a five year contract worth approximately R$750 million ($313 million USD).  The agreement is the largest smart grid project in South American history; under the agreement Landis+Gyr will supply, implement its Gridstream smart grid solution with operation and maintenance of the system.

Landis+Gyr has announced the release of version 3.6 of Power Centerits operating software for demand response and load management applications. Version 3.6 provides support for Gridstream RF network technology used in Landis+Gyr's L530 and L570 load control switches, as well as the L430 programmable communicating thermostat.

NETGEAR's AirCard 785 4G LTE mobile hotspot has been named a 2015 CES Innovation Honoree in the Smart Home category.  The device is the world’s first “unlocked” 4G LTE mobile hotspot with simultaneous dual-band WiFi coverage. For homes that have no or limited fixed broadband connection, the AirCard 785 can be and ideal solution, offering 4G broadband connection.  Its unlocked state mean it is not automatically tied to a service provider's service plan.

The last time I checked Zigbee was up to ten standards, all based on different solutions or sector depending on the use of the product.  Neighborhood Area Network (NAN) was the last one I heard about.  with some standards and the possible that one manufactore might might manufacture for different makrets can mean a lot of work.  The ZigBee Alliance has seen this and has unified all its wireless standards under one standard called ZigBee 3.0.

Zonoff, creators of the Zonoff Connected Home Software Platform, today announced the completion of a Series B investment of $31.8 million USD. The round was a mixture of strategic and venture investment, including current Zonoff investors Grotech Ventures and Valhalla Partners. The close of this Series B round of funding brings Zonoff's total funding to $35.6 million.

Crestron promse to make home automation setup and management easier with the new app Pyng. According to Crestron Pyng will sit at the heart of your home automation system. With it, home integrators can create lifestyle scenes for each room, schedule events, and much more right from an iPad. You whole home automation system can be ready in minutes without using any other programming application.

D-Link Canada has launched a new line of high-performance home networking devices with the Wireless AC3200 Tri-Band Gigabit Router (DIR-890L). Packed with advanced features, the DIR-890L router was designed to keep both the latest and legacy Wi-Fi devices running at peak performance.  It combines Tri-Band wireless connectivity with SmartConnect technology to distribute Wi-Fi traffic over three Wi-Fi radios giving you improved performance and reliability.  For those who have suffered from Wi-Fi weak spots or dead zones in the home.  The Wireless AC3200 Tri-Band Gigabit Router features Advanced AC SmartBeam technology which tracks your connected devices and focuses signals towards them for superior Wi-Fi speed and coverage inside and around the largest of homes.

TRENDnet this week announced the availability of its Home Smart Switch with Wireless Extender (THA-101), the device offers a combination of smart electrical outlet and powerful N300 wireless extension capability. You can plug in a light lamp, fan or appliance into the electrical outlet on the front of the THA-101 then use the TRENDnet's free Apple or Android mobile app to turn the outlet on/off from a mobile device with an Internet connection.

In five years time the world's smart city market will value approxitmately US$1.565 trillion and By 2025, it is expected that around 58% of the world's population or 4.6 billion people will live in urban areas, according to Frost & Sullivan. Within the next ten years, North America and Europe will be host to over 50% of the expected 26 global smart cities. The researchers also pointed out trends in people movement that they think will pose challenges for city Planners.