We hear you: updates to Works with Nest

Last week we announced that we would stop supporting the Works with Nest (WWN) program on August 31, 2019 and transition to the Works with Google Assistant platform (WWGA). The decision to retire WWN was made to unify our efforts around third-party connected home devices under a single platform for developers to build features for a more helpful home. The goal is to simplify the experience for developers and to give you more control over how your data is shared. Since the announcement, we’ve received a lot of questions about this transition. Today we wanted to share our updated plan and clarify our approach.

First, we’re committed to supporting the integrations you value and minimizing disruptions during this transition, so here’s our updated plan for retiring WWN:

• Your existing devices and integrations will continue working with your Nest Account, however you won’t have access to new features that will be available with a Google Account. If we make changes to the existing WWN connections available to you with your Nest Account, we will make sure to keep you informed.

• We’ll stop accepting new WWN connections on August 31, 2019. Once your WWN functionality is available on the WWGA platform you can migrate with minimal disruption from a Nest Account to a Google Account.

Second, we want to clarify how this migration will work for you. Moving forward, we’ll deliver a single consumer and developer experience through the Google Assistant. WWGA already works with over 3,500 partners and 30,000 devices, and integrates seamlessly with Assistant Routines. Routines allow anyone to quickly customize how their smart devices work together based on simple triggers—whether you’re leaving home or going to bed.

One of the most popular WWN features is to automatically trigger routines based on Home/Away status. Later this year, we'll bring that same functionality to the Google Assistant and provide more device options for you to choose from. For example, you’ll be able to have your smart light bulbs automatically turn off when you leave your home. Routines can be created from the Google Home or Assistant apps, and can be created using the hardware you already own. Plus we’re making lots of improvements to setup and managing Routines to make them even easier to use.

We recognize you may want your Nest devices to work with other connected ecosystems. We’re working with Amazon to migrate the Nest skill that lets you control your Nest thermostat and view your Nest camera livestream via Amazon Alexa. Additionally, we’re working with other partners to offer connected experiences that deliver more custom integrations.

For these custom integrations, partners will undergo security audits and we’ll control what data is shared and how it can be used. You’ll aso have more control over which devices these partners will see by choosing the specific devices you want to share. For example, you’ll be able to share your outdoor cameras, but not the camera in your nursery, with a security partner.

We know we can't build a one-size-fits-all solution, so we're moving quickly to work with our most popular developers to create and support helpful interactions that give you the best of Google Nest. Our goal remains to give you the tools you need to make your home, and those of other Nest users, helpful in the ways that matter most to you.

by via The Keyword