Digital Drivers: Opening New Windows

When Seale Moorer, CEO of the Columbus, Ohio-based developer of Lifeware, a Microsoft Windows Media Center Edition-based whole-home-control system, was working as an integrator of POS systems in the early 1990s, the field was locked up by a few dominant system manufacturers, such as IBM, NCR and Fujitsu, that ran off proprietary software through mainframe systems.

POS solutions were expensive, cumbersome, hard to program and difficult to use. Then in the mid-1990s, things began to change. Microsoft started a retail management system initiative, manufacturers such as Dell, Compaq and Hewlett-Packard rolled out less expensive hardware systems, and the Internet emerged to tie it all together. The combination drove prices down and ease of programming up and opened the entire process to new features and functionality from third-party players.

"I went through a paradigm shift when Microsoft Windows-based software came out and placed a bet that it would change that industry," Moorer says. "The same thing is happening in the home."

Call it déjà vu all over again. Until recently, home-control and automation systems were the domain of a few developers, such as Crestron and AMX, which based their systems on proprietary software that remains difficult to program, expensive to install and limited to luxury homes. Even while those companies scramble to introduce more accessible technologies, Exceptional Innovation has gained steady traction in the market.

At last month's International Consumer Electronics Show, Lifeware served as the main control system running the NextGen Home Experience, a 2,500-square-foot model home that featured more than 200 connected devices. Brownstone Builders and Associates, the Landenberg, Pa., company that builds the showcase homes, has deals to build 130 similar smart homes, using the Lifeware/Microsoft platform, in Florida over the next two years. Exceptional Innovation has more than 200 full installs in place. It started with 30 select "beta" integrators and is ready to recruit more.

"We're targeting lots of multi-implementation projects," says Mike Seamons, director of sales and marketing. "Lifeware is a very scalable product and highly competitive with AMX and Crestron. It can scale from the very low end to the very high end."

Exceptional Innovation's partner program includes a mandatory two-day training and certification seminar, reduced-price demos, marketing and sales support, and free 24x7 integrator and customer support. "That allows integrators to increase their ability to manage the products," Seamons says. "All Lifeware systems are fully diagnosable, and we can tell the dealer what needs to be fixed."

Over the past few years, the industry as a whole has been leery of home-control systems that run on Microsoft software, due to perceived stability and security issues. But that attitude is changing as more developers embed the OS into dedicated systems, thereby increasing stability and limiting its vulnerability to Web-borne security threats. The point isn't lost on Moorer.

"We accepted the fact that, back then, the platform wouldn't do as well as some other systems but we decided to bet on the future," he says. "Three years ago, we decided it was the best decision if you could look through the clouds. You have to believe and lay down a marker that the market will excel."

Andre Brown, owner and general manager of Exceptional Entertainment Experience, an integrator in Naples, Fla., saw through the clouds and has placed his bets on Lifeware. Brown was an A/V installer who began installing AMX and Crestron systems a few years back. But he realized Microsoft's technology and other affordable, open-standards products would make their way to the mainstream, helping to create more opportunities. Next month he'll be the lead integrator on Brownstone's first NextGen home project, a 50-unit development in Tampa.

"I wanted a system that would always work, so if a computer goes down it wouldn't shut down the entire operation. With Lifeware, if a handshake breaks in the network, the touch panels, the lighting, the thermostats, the security system, the audio, everything still works," Brown says.

Lower system costs, Brown and other integrators say, are important because they allow the homeowner to spend more on high-margin products. This, in turn, encourages upgrades. "People get funny about budgets," says Brown, adding that he has researched Exceptional Innovation and believes the company will be around for the long haul. "Lifeware gives them a lot more money to spend."

Exceptional Innovation plans to expand Lifeware's wireless capabilities to help increase penetration into the retrofit market, improve its content and video distribution capabilities and add tighter integration with appliances. "The future is about being better connected. We will continue to add partners that want to be part of the ecosystem," Moorer says. "The key will be in unlocking new opportunities for integrators."