The Zigbee Alliance has changed its name to the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA), and rebranded the Connected Home over IP (Chip) project as Matter.

The Matter mark will serve as a seal of approval, assuring that any object built on this standard is reliable by nature, secure by design and compatible at scale. The alliance will continue to develop Zigbee technology and will retain the Zigbee technology brand.

With nearly 20 years operating as a global, open standards organisation, the alliance has continued to expand in scale, scope and impact. From the alliance’s founding technology, Zigbee, to its most recent IP-based standard, Matter, the alliance has been on a mission to simplify and harmonise the IoT.

Matter joins the alliance’s growing portfolio of connectivity standards, including specialised protocols such as Smart Energy, Green Power and RF4ce. The alliance’s technologies are built on the foundations of openness principles, a common data model and the expertise of member companies from across the industry. With this, the alliance is elevating its brand identity to align with this role in shaping the future of the IoT by creating world-wide standards that impact the market.

The new visual identity includes a ligature in the monogram, which represents not just the connectivity powered by the alliance protocols, but the coming together of individual companies that make up the alliance. With a personalised set of over 100 ligatures, the brand celebrates the connection between the alliance members and the connection alliance technologies enable.

The brand colour palette of blue and ivory is an updated reference to the visual lexicon of blueprints, reflecting the Connectivity Standards Alliance’s role in developing foundational connectivity standards. Representing the role the alliance continues to play in bringing together the industry, the super connector is an added visual element that links concepts, people and themes throughout brand applications and communications.

“This year is historic for the alliance as our growth and efforts flourish with the demand for smart home and building connectivity,” said Tobin Richardson, CEO of the Connectivity Standards Alliance. “It’s the perfect time to both unveil our new brand, positioning the alliance as the home for collaboration and development of IoT standards with our members, and launch these trusted marks recognisable by the market we collectively serve.”

Last year was a record-breaking year for the alliance with more than 560 Zigbee technology devices certified, an increase of over 30 per cent from the year prior. Over half a billion Zigbee chipsets have been sold and nearly four billion are expected to ship by 2023. Consumer and commercial demands for simple, connected experiences continue to grow, as Q1 2021 certifications exceeded Q1 2020 by more than 50 per cent.

The CSA has members in more than 37 countries. Members come from across the value chain – silicon, software, device, ecosystem, service provider and retail – and from across the connected home, commercial and multiple industry domains.

There are now more than 350 member organisations of all sizes, across a range of business categories, and over 3000 member individuals who are participating in bringing use cases, specifications, reference implementations, testing tools and certification programmes to life.

The alliance has partnered with the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the Council on the Connected World on an initiative to help build a global connected future that is more sustainable, resilient, and equitable for all.