During Google I/O, Google made it clear that it is placing a new focus on privacy and security, especially when it comes to the company’s smart home devices. One part of that initiative includes locking down the company’s Nest platform to keep third parties from having unfettered access to user data. As part of that move, the “Works with Nest” program is being phased out. That doesn’t mean all of your devices will stop communicating with Nest, though — especially if you have products from Control4. The company is promising it will continue to support Nest, even as Google undergoes its changes.
According to Control4, the smart home product manufacturer plans to embrace Google’s new “Works with Google Assistant” program that is replacing the Nest equivalent. In addition, Control4 said that it will start developing new Nest drivers in cooperation with Google’s Certification standards that will allow the company’s devices to continue to operate uninterrupted within the Nest ecosystem.
Google will officially end the Works With Nest program on August 31, 2019, so Control4 and other companies will have an opportunity to migrate their existing products over to the new Works with Google Assistant program. That will require some changes and updates to devices, but should help keep everything running without issue.
“Fostering a large ecosystem of support for third-party devices is an important feature of Control4 and something we are deeply committed to,” Control4 Sr Vice President of Products and Services Charlie Kindel said in a statement. “In the same way that we were an early adopter of the “Works with Nest” program, Control4 intends to embrace this new program to continue to offer customers choice and flexibility for the smart products in a Control4 Smart Home.”
For the time being, Control4 customers won’t have to do anything. Starting on June 25, 2019, new Nest devices will be unable to be added to Control4 projects using the Works with Nest drivers. Control4 plans to have a new driver for the Works with Google Assistant program available in the near future, and encourages its users to contact Control4 for assistance in installing the update once it becomes available.
