![Nice Highlights Biometric Access Control Panel in $285M Nortek Acquisition](https://findbiometrics.com/wp-content/uploads/iStock_eLock-300x2251.jpg)
Italian smart home solutions provider Nice has acquired US-based Nortek Security & Control, in a tangential illustration of growing excitement over biometric access control.
The latter is not Nortek’s central focus, to be clear. The company offers a number of brands and solutions covering a range of market areas including power management, smart home technology, and even personal health. But notably, this past March saw the launch of Nortek’s 2GIG EDGE Security and Automation Panel, a home security control panel with facial recognition capabilities.
The panel allows registered users to disarm an alarm system through facial recognition, and stores users’ biometric data entirely on-device to ensure that it is protected against external server breaches.
The 2GIG EDGE Security and Automation Panel was a focal point of Nice’s announcement of the acquisition, which highlighted Nortek’s AI technology and its portfolio of more than 200 patents. This underlines the growing prominence of biometric technology in the broader access control space, with a growing number of more traditional vendors now paying close attention to the security and convenience advantages of the technology.
“Nortek Control has built a reputation for delivering innovative and industry-leading platforms to the market,” proclaimed Nortek Security & Control CEO and President Christopher Larocca. “With the addition of the Nice product lines our consolidated organization will now offer one of the broadest and deepest portfolio of disruptive products to the market.”
Nice Chairman and founder Lauro Buoro, meanwhile, added that the acquisition solidifies Nice’s presence in North America and extends it global footprint, with the company now comprising more than 3,000 employees and 16 R&D centers.
The acquisition is valued at $285 million, with Nice and Nortek aiming to fully integrate their businesses in 2023.
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October 6, 2021 – by Alex Perala
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