Parks Associates: Nearly Two-Thirds of Consumers Would Buy a Smart Thermostat if Combined With $75 Utility Rebate

DALLAS, TX--(Marketwired - Feb 11, 2014) - New Parks Associates research shows consumer adoption of smart thermostats could expand significantly if paired with utility rebate programs. The firm's "360 View: Energy & American Broadband Households Consumers" reports 43% of U.S. broadband households are willing to purchase a smart thermostat if offered a $25 rebate, 55% would purchase if offered a $50 rebate, and 62% would purchase if offered a $75 rebate.

Parks Associates will discuss the research and the growing market for connected appliances and the smart home at the 2014 Smart Energy Summit: Engaging the Consumer on February 17-19 at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, Texas. Debbie Kimberly, VP of Distributed Energy Services, Austin Energy, will discuss the company's Power Partner Thermostat Program during the opening keynote "Leveraging New Approaches and New Technologies in Addressing Utility Challenges." Erik Charlton, VP, Business, Nest, will also address smart thermostats in the luncheon keynote, "From Push to Pull: How Nest is Redefining Energy Services."

"Consumers are interested in smart thermostats but are generally unwilling to pay more for the ability to control a thermostat from a smartphone or computer," said Tom Kerber, director, energy and home controls research, Parks Associates. "Utility incentives that eliminate the price difference between smart and standard programmable thermostats will accelerate adoption."

Parks Associates found, when a smart thermostat is priced at $50 more than a programmable thermostat without Internet connectivity, 39% of consumers would choose the smart thermostat. Those willing to buy increased to 42% when the difference was lowered to $25.

2014 Smart Energy Summit sponsors are Speed Wire, Percepscion, Alarm.com, Earth Networks - WeatherBug, ecobee, EcoFactor, Lowe's, Opower, People Power, PlanetEcosystems, Qualcomm, Technicolor, Z-Wave, AlertMe, Schneider Electric, and Tendril.

Information about the 2014 Smart Energy Summit is available at http://www.ses2014.com. Press passes are available at http://www.parksassociates.com/ses-presspass. If you'd like to schedule a meeting with an analyst or speaker or request materials from the energy conference, please contact Holly Sprague at hsprague@gmail.com or 720.987.6614.

About Smart Energy Summit
Smart Energy Summit examines the expanding market for energy solutions and home controls and its impact on utilities, service providers, retailers, manufacturers, and consumers. www.ses2014.com