The new partnership creates a collaboration between Comnet Europe and sister-company Vanderbilt International and primarily includes leveraging internal systems and supply chain and logistics structures. This new relationship is effective immediately.

A significant enhancement resulting from this partnership is that Comnet now has a fully functional, pan-European Technical Support team in place to support customers across the globe.

“The changes build from Comnet’s continued growth over the past year,” explains Tom Exley, General Manager of Comnet Europe. “This format is designed to help Comnet customers get technical support faster and more efficiently. This is because, at Comnet, we are determined to put our customers first, in everything we do.”

This integration means Comnet customers will have greater access to a higher number of technical support agents, including local support in core languages. Meaning geographical hubs can operate more effectively and ensure resolutions for any technical issues as quickly as possible.

Crucially, up until this point, Comnet’s Technical Support team was reinforced primarily by the company’s sales managers. Therefore, this collaboration of technical support with Vanderbilt will free up Comnet Sales to focus solely on bringing the best products, services, and offers to their clientele.

So, this new partnership enables Comnet to increase their scope of offerings, such as pre, pending, and post-sales support, plus the ability to design and implement complete high-performance solutions to answer customer pain points.

“We believe this opportunity will significantly improve our support services model and enable our geographical hubs to operate more effectively. This will result in a more efficient cycle of how we manage and maintain our rapidly expanding customer base,” concludes Exley.

According to 6wresearch, the Turkish video surveillance market revenues are projected to grow at a CAGR of 3.3% during 2019-25. The Turkish video surveillance market has registered a decline in demand during the last three years on the back of a halt in construction and infrastructure development projects coupled with depreciating currency resulting in surge in prices of imported goods. However, growing threat from terrorism, rising security concerns primarily theft, and domestic crimes are some of the key drivers that have propelled the growth of the video surveillance system market in the Turkey over the past seven years.

6wresearch analysts suggest that growth would be aided during the forecast period due to increasing government initiatives towards city surveillance and smart city projects, which would result in a surge in deployment of high-resolution IP cameras across the country. Further, growing consumer awareness towards video surveillance for security and monitoring coupled with declining installation costs could also result in higher demand for video surveillance systems in Turkey’s residential sector and small retail stores.

According to Ravi Bhandari, Research Manager, Research and Consulting, 6wresearch, “Within components, the surveillance camera segment accounted for the majority of the market revenue share. Wherein, amongst the analogue and IP camera sub-segment, demand for IP cameras is increasing owing to various technological advancements such as digital PTZ, embedded video analytics capabilities and cloud solutions.”

According to Shefali Goel, Assistant Manager, Research and Consulting, 6wresearch, “Growing acceptance and a surge in FDI in the construction sector has resulted in an increase in demand for video surveillance solutions. Moreover, in 2018, the government and transportation, commercial offices and retail segments all together registered the maximum share of the revenue pie in the overall video surveillance market in Turkey. Amongst all the regions, the Marmara region witnessed the highest number of installations of video surveillance cameras on account of the volume of city surveillance projects. Istanbul is the key city which has registered maximum installation of surveillance cameras in the Marmara region due to a surge in tourism in the region leading to high safety issues,” Shefali concluded.

Some of the key players cited as being involved in the video surveillance market in Turkey include- Axis Communications, Bosch Security, CP Plus FZE, Dahua Technology, Hanwha Techwin, Hikvision, LG Innotek, Panasonic, and Pelco by Schneider Electric.

The initial unaudited preliminary financial data for 2018 for, Zhejiang Dahua Technology Co., Ltd, more commonly known as Dahua, show that the company achieved a total operating revenue of RMB 23,665,688,106.22 (USD: 3.45 billion approx), representing a year-on-year increase of 25.58%.

Operating Profit amounted to RMB 2,696,619,590.13 (USD: 0.39 billion), representing an increase of 2.44% as compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. Net profits attributable to shareholders of the Company amounted to RMB 2,531,526,444.05 (USD: 0.37 billion), growing 6.42% year on year.

During the reporting period, the company strengthened the precise investment in R&D, continuously improved its video-centric smart IoT solution capabilities, grasped the development trend of the market and industry, and realised the continuous growth of the company’s performance.

During the reporting period, the Company’ total asset increased by 23.52% and net asset increased by 20.58%, mainly due to the expansion of the business scale and the increase of the profit.

Tech Data has been appointed as a pan-European distributor in an agreement with Honeywell spin-off company Resideo. As a result, Tech Data will carry Resideo’s full line of Honeywell Home-branded DIY and self-install smart security and comfort solutions for residential customers.

Resideo’s Honeywell Home products harness the power of connectivity to create homes that are more comfortable, secure and energy efficient. The range includes smart thermostats, home awareness cameras and security systems, and water leak and freeze detectors. The products integrate easily with the most widely used home automation systems including Amazon Alexa, Apple Homkit, Google Home and Samsung Smartthings.

Jennifer Bonuso, vice president and general manager, Consumer Products, at Resideo said, “Resideo products are already in 150 million homes, and we have more than 100 years of heritage in meeting the comfort, security and home awareness needs of homeowners. This agreement with Tech Data will strengthen our position in the European consumer electronics retail channel as it gives us access to a wider population of consumers who prefer to purchase their products at leading retailers.”

In October of 2018, Resideo became an independent company from Honeywell with a long-term licensing agreement for the Honeywell Home brand.

Assa Abloy has, as a 39 percent shareholder in the Swiss company Agta Record ag, signed an agreement with the shareholders of Agta Finance to indirectly acquire their 54 percent shareholding in Agta Record. The purchase price for the Acquisition amounts to approximately EUR 502 million equivalent to a purchase price per Agta Record share of EUR 70.

After the completion of the acquisition, which is conditional upon EU antitrust authorities approval in particular, Assa Abloy will own approximately 93 percent of the share capital and voting rights of the company and will launch a public tender offer for the remaining outstanding shares at the same purchase price.

Agta Record is a well-established manufacturer and service organisation dedicated to automatic pedestrian entrance systems. The company is headquartered in Fehraltorf, Switzerland and has 2,600 employees. For 2018 agta record´s sales amounted to EUR 374.4 million. The Company’s extensive expertise covers the design, production, marketing, installation and maintenance of a large range of automatic doors. Agta Record sells its products and services across the globe and is directly present with subsidiaries in 17 countries.

“I look forward to welcoming Agta Record and all of its employees into the Assa Abloy Group. I am convinced that Assa Abloy will be a very good home for Agta Record which is a strategic addition to the Group and adds important competence, products and services and thus enhances Assa Abloy´s position in a competitive entrance automation market, where our sales have grown from SEK 3 billion in 2008 to SEK 24 billion in 2018,” says Nico Delvaux, President and CEO of Assa Abloy.

Motorola Solutions will equip the German federal police with its Si500 video speaker microphone and a digital evidence management software solution.

The technology will help law enforcement officers and citizens to be better protected and will improve incident investigations. The Motorola Solutions Si500 combines a body-worn video camera, a remote speaker microphone that connects to the officer’s two-way radio and a smart interface in a single device, reducing the load police officers have to carry when on patrol. As part of the roll-out, 2,300 Motorola Solutions Si500 devices will be delivered by the end of 2020. They will complement the Motorola Solutions Tetra digital two-way radios solutions that are already being used by the German federal police.

The Motorola Solutions body-worn video cameras are easy to use and provide reliable voice communications, video and audio recording as well as image capture. Data will be securely stored in a digital evidence management system, keeping the chain of evidence intact from capture to courtroom.

“Law enforcement officers are facing increasing challenges today to ensure the safety of citizens. With our globally proven, secure and reliable communication solutions we support public safety organisations to be their best in the moments that matter,” said Axel Kukuk, Germany country manager, Motorola Solutions. “Our Si500 video speaker microphone with integrated body-worn camera provides a best-in-class solution to tackle these challenges and increase the safety of first responders and citizens.”

Milestone Systems has launched Milestone Marketplace, a digital platform for the video technology industry designed to connect buyers and sellers to co-create innovative solutions.

The global video management industry is seeing innovation like never before, creating new opportunities that transform the way video management technology is used – not only to protect people and assets, but also to help optimise business and improve the way people live and work. Milestone Systems’ open platform aims to make these innovations easily available to buyers – integrators, consultants and end-customers – enabling the industry to build intelligent solutions together and expand their reach.

Milestone Marketplace is presented as a centralised knowledge hub for the industry, including installation guides, demos, and other relevant documentation that have never before been available to the industry in one place.

“With Milestone Marketplace, we open up the innovation power of our community of buyers and sellers. Milestone Marketplace enables our technology partners to grow their businesses through the global Milestone Systems community. At the same time, Milestone Marketplace helps simplify complex choices for our system integrators and end-customers, who gets access to a rich and trustworthy resources pool from which they can build video management solutions,” says CMSO Kenneth Hune Petersen, Milestone Systems.

Milestone Marketplace will expand with new areas in the years to come. In order to join Milestone Marketplace, technology partners need to be part of Milestone Systems’ new Technology Partner Program – which offers applications, hardware and services that complement and extend the Milestone Xprotect video management platform.

According to a new research report on the access control market from Marketsandmarkets, this sector is expected to grow from USD 7.5 billion in 2018 to USD 12.1 billion by 2024, at a CAGR of 8.24%. The growth of the access control market is attributed to the high adoption of access control solutions inline with increasing crime rates globally; technological advancements and deployment of wireless technology in security systems; and adoption of IoT-based security systems with cloud computing platforms.

The adoption of access control as a service (ACaaS), implementation of mobile-based access control and increasing urbanisation in emerging countries are also expected to provide huge growth opportunities to players in the access control market.

The biometric readers segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR from 2018 to 2024. The market for biometric reader-based access control systems has been further categorised into fingerprint recognition, hand geometry recognition, iris recognition, and face recognition. Biometric readers are rapidly gaining worldwide traction owing to the growing need for surveillance and security in government facilities, manufacturing units, power stations, defense establishments, and enterprises.

The researchers predict that the access control market for the residential vertical is expected to grow at the highest CAGR from 2018 to 2024. The key factors contributing to the growth of this market include the rise in crime rates, ongoing technological advancements, increasing need for hazard detection such as fire and gas leaks, and ensuring the safety of children at home.

Growing security concerns will boost demand for access control solutions in the APAC regions during the forecast period, and as a result this region is expected to grow at the highest CAGR to 2024. Factors driving the growth of the market in this region include growing industrialisation, commercialisation, and high demand for security systems. Also, rising terror threats and crime rates in the APAC countries and low police officer to population ratios are expected to create high demand for access control systems there.

The analysts cite the key players in the market as Assa Abloy, Johnson Controls, Dormakaba, Allegion, Honeywell, Identiv, Nedap, Suprema, Bosch Security Systems, and Gemalto. These players are increasingly undertaking product launches and developments, mergers and acquisitions, contracts, partnerships, and agreements to develop and introduce new technologies and products to the market.

The global edge AI software market is expected to grow from USD 356 million in 2018 to USD 1,152 million by 2023, with the major factors fuelling market growth cited as the increasing enterprise workloads on the cloud and rapid growth in the number of intelligent applications. According to the Marketsandmarkets latest report on the subject, the increasing adoption of edge AI software in autonomous vehicles’ applications could provide growth opportunities for the edge AI software vendors in the market.

In this market the vendors offer edge AI solutions as software tools and platforms. The edge AI software tools are a combination of Machine Learning (ML) and edge computing technology, and automatically turn raw data into events, insights, and predictions, without big data and costly analysis. The software tools that are being offered in the edge AI software market are in the form of Software Development Kits (SDKs) and frameworks, which allow users to integrate AI capabilities in the application software.

Marketsandmarkets predicts that the energy and utilities vertical is estimated to hold the largest market size during the forecast period. This segment includes high-stake, technology-driven operations, which depend on real-time insights to provide proactive monitoring and protection against machinery and equipment failure. Most of the operations happen at a remote area and lack reliable network infrastructure; edge AI software provides data analytics on edge devices to enable real-time response, which is required for maximum production and safety.

The findings show that North America is the major revenue-generating region in the global edge AI software market. This region is witnessing major developments in the edge AI software space. Many AI solution providers in North America are experimenting in the edge AI software market by integrating AI and ML functionalities with their existing edge AI solutions. They are also adopting various growth strategies to strengthen their position in the edge AI software market.

The major vendors cited as being active in the global edge AI software market include IBM, Google, Microsoft, AWS, Nutanix, Tibco, Octonion, Swim.AI, Imagimob, Anagog, Foghorn Systems, Xnor.AI, Bragi, Invision.AI, Tact.ai, and Veea Systems.