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A response from NetGear regarding the VueZone IoT trashcan story

5d3_9839-100670811-primary.idgeThank you, NetGear, for the response to my July 11 opinion essay for NetworkWorld, “Throwing our IoT investment in the trash thanks to NetGear.” In that story, I used the example of our soon-to-be-obsolete VueZone home video monitoring system: At the end of 2017, NetGear is turning off the back-end servers that make VueZone work – and so all the hardware will become fancy camera-shaped paperweights.

The broader message of the story is that every IoT device tied into a proprietary back-end service will be turned to recycleware if (or when) the service provider chooses to turn it off. My friend Jason Perlow picked up this theme in his story published on July 12 on ZDNet, “All your IoT devices are doomed” and included a nice link to my NetworkWorld story. As Jason wrote,

First, it was Aether’s smart speaker, the Cone. Then, it was the Revolv smart hub. Now, it appears NetGear’s connected home wireless security cameras, VueZone, is next on the list.

I’m sure I’ve left out more than a few others that have slipped under the radar. It seems like every month an Internet of Things (IoT) device becomes abandonware after its cloud service is discontinued.

Many of these devices once disconnected from the cloud become useless. They can’t be remotely managed, and some of them stop functioning as standalone (or were never capable of it in the first place). Are these products going end-of-life too soon? What are we to do about this endless pile of e-waste that seems to be the inevitable casualty of the connected-device age?

I would like to publicly acknowledge NetGear for sending a quick response to my story. Apparently — and contrary to what I wrote — the company did offer a migration path for existing VueZone customers. I can’t find the message anywhere, but can’t ignore the possibility that it was sucked into the spamverse.

Here is the full response from Nathan Papadopulos, Global Communications & Strategic Marketing for NetGear:

Hello Alan,

I am writing in response to your recent article about disposing of IoT products. As you may know, the VueZone product line came to Netgear   as part of our acquisition of Avaak, Inc. back in 2012, and is the predecessor of the current Arlo security system. Although we wanted to avoid interruptions of the VueZone services as much as possible, we are now faced with the need to discontinue support  for the camera line. VueZone was built on technologies which are now outdated and a platform which is not scalable. Netgear has since shifted our resources to building better, more robust products which are the Arlo system of security cameras. Netgear is doing our best to help VueZone customers migrate to the Arlo platform by offering significant discounts, exclusive to our VueZone customers.

1. On July 1, 2016, Netgear officially announced the discontinuation of VueZone services to VueZone customers. Netgear has sent out an email notification to the entire VueZone customer base with the content in the “Official End-of-Services Announcement.” Netgear is providing the VueZone customers with an 18-month notice, which means that the actual effective date of this discontinuation of services will be on January 1, 2018.

2. Between July 2 and July 6, 26,000+ customers who currently have an active VueZone base station have received an email with an offer to purchase an Arlo 4-camera kit. There will be two options for them to choose from:

a. Standard Arlo 4-camera kit for $299.99

b. Refurbished Arlo 4-camera kit for $149.99

Both refurbished and new Arlo systems come with the NETGEAR limited 1-year hardware warranty. The promotion will run until the end of July 31, 2016.

It appears NetGear is trying to do the right thing, though they lose points for offering the discounted migration path for less than one month. Still, the fact remains that obsolescence of service-dependent IoT devices is a big problem. Some costly devices will cease functioning if the service goes down; others will lose significant functionality.

And thank you, Jason, for the new word: Abandonware.

8 replies
  1. John Kofroth
    John Kofroth says:

    Anyone,

    Would you buy the refurbished ARLO cameras ($49) they are offering VueZone owners?

    Thanks,
    John Kofroth

      • John Kofroth
        John Kofroth says:

        Alan,
        Thanks for the response. Perhaps there is a Arlo forum somewhere I can ask the question.
        Right now there offer expires 12/12. Not sure if they are going to extend it. 21 days after I order my VueZone system becomes a boat anchor. I should re read the conditions again and see if I can delay the activation.

        John

  2. Genaro
    Genaro says:

    26,000+ existing customers can generate a lot of negative publicity. Pulling the plug is no way to grow a company in an already highly competitive business. The right decision may not always be the cheapest route, but growing companies will never substitute the right decision for anything less.

  3. Gregg
    Gregg says:

    As a current VueZone customer, this has irked me for the last year. I have decided that I will never purchase another Netgear product. I’ve completed several months of research on a new hybrid system for both my homes. I still can’t believe they were trying to force a decision within 30 days.

  4. Joseph Gaddis
    Joseph Gaddis says:

    This article is the first I have heard about the discounts to VueZone customers. Because I am unable to rewire for other cameras, I am stuck with a totally wireless system. Are they still offering the discounts? If so how do you get it? I am very disappointed that they stopped the support for those little easy to use cameras. They served their purpose very well and the battery life was great, but the new Arlo system is too much for the 123s.

    • Alan Zeichick
      Alan Zeichick says:

      It’s been two years now; I have no idea if the migration discount is still offered. You might check with NetGear customer service.

Trackbacks & Pingbacks

  1. […] The next day, I was contacted by the company’s global communications manager. He defended the policy, arguing that NetGear was not only giving 18 months’ notice of the shutdown, but they are “doing our best to help VueZone customers migrate to the Arlo platform by offering significant discounts, exclusive to our VueZone customers.” See “A response from NetGear regarding the VueZone IoT trashcan story.” […]

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