Eero is moving beyond consumers and partnering with internet service providers. The Amazon-owned router company has announced Eero for Service Providers, an offering that includes hardware and software tools for ISPs. It will be available in the US and Canada starting in November, with more features coming in December and throughout 2021. Eero says it’s offering the tools at “attractive price points.”
The platform includes three components at launch. One is Eero Insight, which collects usage data to help ISPs foresee customers’ Wi-Fi issues and address them early. The company estimates that the tool will provide technicians “up to an estimated 30 percent reduction in time spent resolving Wi-Fi issues.”
The second is Eero Secure, a subscription service that can be deployed with the company’s mesh Wi-Fi systems. Customers can use it to block attacks like malware, spyware, and phishing. It also includes parental controls. And Eero is also offering its Eero 6 Mesh Wi-Fi system to ISPs, which supports Wi-Fi 6 and includes a built-in Zigbee smart home hub. The company says that users will be able to manage their internet experience with an “ISP co-branded mobile app” — they can pause their internet service and share it with guests.
Eero isn’t the first manufacturer to release products like this. Comcast’s xFi internet platform also includes a subscription security service that blocks suspicious activity and quarantines devices. (Disclosure: Comcast is an investor in Vox Media, The Verge’s parent company.)
