Instead of creating new services to manage each Matter ecosystem separately, broadband service providers and application developers now only need to develop and launch them once.

“Industry efforts around Matter have made smart home devices work together, but access to those devices is still often controlled through proprietary ecosystems,” said Jason Walls, co-director of the Broadband Forum’s Connected Users Working Group and director of technical marketing at QA Cafe. “This means that customer experience services, such as diagnostics, automation services, energy management solutions, and customer care tools, can be deployed at scale to address Matter-related issues in the smart home before customers even realize it,” Walls continued.

Matter is a universal connectivity standard that allows devices from different manufacturers (such as Apple, Google, Amazon, and Samsung) to communicate with each other on a network. As the number of devices using the Matter standard increases, so does the need for a common services layer. The latest versions of Matter have added support for cameras, energy management devices, appliances, sensors, shading systems, and other categories that are increasingly forming the foundation of connected home experiences.

“Many Matter-compatible smart home deployments are still tied to proprietary cloud platforms, mobile apps, and vendor-specific integrations. As a result, service providers and third-party developers often face a fragmented landscape when trying to build services that work across devices from different manufacturers,” said Xavier Roubaud, product line manager for connected home at Orange Innovation. “Thanks to the Matter Services API, smart home gateways and control centers can now become stable platforms for innovation, making it easier for service providers to launch new, monetizable services.”

The MatterService data model for USP-compliant devices (TR-517) combines the Broadband Forum's User Services Platform (USP/TR-369) with the Matter protocol, establishing a consistent API and unified platform for managing the smart home customer experience across broadband gateways, routers, and smart home hubs. Because the model automatically adapts to Matter's evolving device definitions, service providers have a future-proof framework that can scale as new device types enter the ecosystem.

Learn more about TR-517

Jason Walls (QA Café) and Matthieu Anne (Orange) analyze the advantages of the Matter services API here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWXq63IQuKo