ADT: Consumer Electronics Show 'very important'

LAS VEGAS—The annual Consumer Electronics Show didn't used to loom so large on ADT's radar. But 2014 marks the second year in a row the security giant has had a booth at CES and the company now views it as an event not to be missed, according to Tony Wells, ADT SVP and chief marketing officer.

“It has become a very important show for us,” Wells told Security Systems News.

He said the 2014 International CES, held here Jan. 7 through Jan. 10, was an opportunity for ADT to not only make announcements about new partnerships, such as one with Ford Motor Co. and additions to ADT Pulse in 2014, which include a new voice app, but also to check out the latest technology and trends, meet with new potential partners and showcase itself to booth visitors and the media.

CES this year was the largest in show history, with a record 2 million net square feet of exhibit space, more than 3,200 exhibitors and more than 150,000 attendees, according to the Consumer Electronics Association, which owns the event.

Wells said, “We had been to the show before just as individuals, checking the show out but in terms of a corporate presence, this is only our second year for ADT.” ADT split from Tyco International in the fall of 2012 and became an independent company.

He said ADT finds the show “useful on a number of fronts.”

At a show where so much new cutting-edge technology is being touted, Wells said the event “helps communicate one of our core values, which is the idea of innovation.”

And of course ADT used the show to make announcements, such as that it is partnering with Ford Motor Company in 2014 to enable drivers to do such things as open garage doors or control their thermostats from a car.

ADT also announced it has added enhancements to ADT Pulse—such as remote garage door control.

Those announcements were very timely because Wells said that one “big break-out trend at the show was the connected automobile.”

He said, “All the automobile guys are there now, and we announced our partnership with Ford Motor Co. to bring out ADT Pulse into the Ford SYNC platform so that will allow our ADT customers to communicate hands-free voice controls to arm and disarm and make commands to the system.”

The company also announced it is partnering with Internet security provider McAfee this year to offer customers a plan that not only protects their homes, but their digital devices and data. Additionally, ADT is partnering with health solutions provider Ideal Life to support its ADT Health platform “with real-time health management services.”

Wells said those partnerships all underscore the “evolution of security.”

He explained, “It's not just about the premises, about the four walls anymore, it's about how do you get engagement and activate your security whether you're at home or away, whether it's digital or premises or personal security.”

Wells also said that CES “is turning into the show where there's a lot more happening that's not just on the show floor.” He said there are potential partners to meet with and also media players from sites that include Facebook, Twitter and Google.

And the booth drew lots of visitors, he said.

“We were the first ones on a mass level to launch a home automation and security combined platform with ADT Pulse and there are still a lot of folks that don't know ADT has these product offerings. And they see after they come to our booth an opportunity to work with us whether it is someone in the insurance industry, a device manufacturer or a marketing partner. So, we had a ton of traffic and it was a really, really productive weeklong event for us,” Wells said.