Verizon and Bright House are suddenly in a mad rush to take control of your coffeemaker.
The rival companies that already sell telephone, Internet and TV service now plan to start selling whole-house automation systems that control everything from lights and doors to appliances and video cameras.
Verizon will soon start selling a Home Monitoring Control service, and Bright House will soon start selling a more premium home-monitoring and security service, staffed and connected to police and fire departments.
The projects are the main new lines of business to business and a way for them to lock in customers who might otherwise want to switch providers to save a few dollars a month.