Philips Discontinues Philips Pronto Product Line

The home control market has lost one of its key players; after 30 years Philips said it will no longer manufacture its Philips Pronto remote control because the product line no longer fits with the Philips’ strategy. This comes as a shock to me because I thought they were going well especially with recent releases, like the TSW9500 in-wall Pronto touchscreen and DUAL.  Apparently the company has been looking for a partner to take the Pronto business off its hands since last year but none was found.

The official statement from Philips is: “In December 2009, Philips announced the intention to relocate some of its existing remote control activities in Leuven, Belgium to Asia.  At the same time, the intention was communicated to investigate alternative strategic options for the Pronto business, as this activity no longer fits with the Philips strategy. Following thorough research, no suitable partner was found for the acquisition of these activities. As such, Philips confirms today that it will discontinue the Pronto product line and related activities. “

According to the CEPro website Philips said the iPod and iPad are not to be blame for the move, although more and more of us are using these and other devices to control their connected home systems.  It did not say in the news if the Philips Pronto Control Processor due February 2011, will still come to market.

The market is now open for competitors like Control4 and their InfinityEdge Touch Screen, Logitech and others.