Plume: powering smart homes with VodafoneZiggo

Together with Plume, VodafoneZiggo launched their SmartWifi service last year that leverages adaptive WiFi technology.

Responding to the rise of 5G and the futuristic potential of the IoT, in-home connectivity has been set as one of VodafoneZiggo's key focus areas. 

In fact, around half of all of the company’s call centre enquiries concern some aspect of in-home connectivity. There’s no clearer indication of consumer priorities.

So, in response to these enquiries, as well as the demand increase fuelled by the pandemic, VodafoneZiggo recently partnered with Plume, a specialist smart home experience management company.

Providing adaptive WiFi – raising the bar for home connectivity

Working with Plume has enabled VodafoneZiggo to offer a state-of-the-art adaptive WiFi solution. This, despite being a very new technology, was hugely important for VodafoneZiggo’s customers.

“We saw the importance for our customers. We saw, when we launched it, what adaptive WiFi does for the customers and how it helps to get in-home connectivity to the level it needs to be and the quality that they expect from us… And that's what the customers value the most.”

Central to adaptive WiFi technology are sophisticated AI algorithms that work seamlessly to optimise the service, according to the subscriber’s unique environment and network usage, thereby ensuring the best possible customer experience.

“With Plume, we are able to get a lot of monitoring data, a lot of data about KPIs, and how customers are using their networks and devices. So, in case of troubleshooting or something going wrong in the house, we are able – with our technicians and call agents – to see what's going on, troubleshoot and then solve the issues with the customers a lot faster.”

“For us to make it work in the background for the customer, and to have it seamlessly working and running with the right network automation, with the right artificial intelligence, with the right data – that's what adaptive WiFi does for us. And that's what Plume brings for us. It gets services to work and makes the infrastructure invisible for the customer.”

Driven by the pandemic, lifestyle changes and WFH – the need for cloud-first connectivity solutions

Although, obviously, the COVID-19 pandemic made working from home a necessity, many industry experts believe that this has created a permanent shift in our working routines.

For instance, according to a recent Forbes thought piece, a quarter of all professional jobs in North America will be remote by the end of this year, and it’s projected that this figure will continue to rise into 2023. Furthermore, pre-pandemic, remote opportunities previously represented less than 4% of all high-paying jobs; this more than doubled to 9% at the end of 2020 and is currently set at over 15%.

Van Den Berg outlined how, although adaptive WiFi was on the table for some time, it was the COVID-19 pandemic that accelerated its implementation.

VodafoneZiggo’s partnership with Plume began when the pandemic started, at a time when having fast, safe and flawless WiFi at home became even more important for consumers.

“That re-emphasised, for us, the importance of getting our SmartWifi service launched and live in as many customer homes as possible, as quickly as possible.”

Read the full VodafoneZiggo digital report HERE.