Subscriber Discussion

Did Hikvision Go Direct? (Ezviv)

U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 14, 2015
IPVMU Certified

EZVIZ is Hikvision's P2P cloud offering. But is it more than just water vapor?

There are camera and camera kits on Amazon sold by EZVIZ.

$699 for 8 channel 1080p system is pretty cheap.

Recently it was reported that

During a tour of its vertical-focused exhibition space, a Hikvision staffer discussed the company’s EZVIZ suite of cloud-based DIY security cameras and related home automation products. The company said the portfolio will not be sold through the dealer channel and is instead marketed to consumers via Amazon and Sam’s Club.

What's the deal?

[UPDATE: The answer is yes, Hikvision Launches Direct End User Sales

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U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 15, 2015
IPVMU Certified

EZVIZ cameras on display table and in corner being presented by Hik employee.

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UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #2
Nov 15, 2015

As suspected...

create demand, get big under-cutting the rest on price, become a name, then screw the channel,

And I would also suspect this is how they will recoup and make some money/margin. Dealing this new way must deliver them a higher margin than what they have been doing to now.

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U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 15, 2015
IPVMU Certified

Lest anyone think this is just a pure residential play:

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JH
John Honovich
Nov 15, 2015
IPVM

Note: That is from the Enterprise Security section of the Hikvision Ezviv website.

Also on the same page:

U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 15, 2015
IPVMU Certified

Their babycam looks like a white Dropcam HD. Hard to find specs on it, but their currently shipping ugly 720p version includes 1yr of 7 day recording and local storage for $69.

If they can do a 1080p one for $99 they might do well...

U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 16, 2015
IPVMU Certified

One thing I wondering, who should be more pissed, authorized Hikvision dealers or Hikvision's large OEM partners?

Dealers will of course be upset that Hik is competing with them directly, even if under a different brand.

OEMs on the other hand will be offended, since Hik will be directly competing with them as well, like just another OEM, but with lower product costs.

Seems a risky strategy to me.

Did anyone even officially communicate this to the dealer network?

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U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 16, 2015
IPVMU Certified

Update: the main EZVIZ site appears to be www.ezvizlife.com. Here are the kits listed there:

Here is a transcript of a chat with their polite rep:

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JH
John Honovich
Nov 16, 2015
IPVM

"They are totally different products."

I guess that's somewhat accurate but consider:

JH
John Honovich
Nov 16, 2015
IPVM

So I talked to phone support. The guy was very hesitant / confused about why I asked about Hikvision. Clearly he knew who Hikvision was and was able to provide me with their phone number. However, my understanding is that he is at a call center and not at their office.

Obviously, Hikvision and Evziz are related but what they are doing with this setup is very peculiar. It's like they are OEMing themselves.

UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #3
Nov 16, 2015

I believe a Whois of both domains come back to Hikvision

ezviz7.com

ezvizlife.com

(the chinese version is www.ys7.com)

and you register your ezviz at the Hikvision site hicloudcam.com

JH
John Honovich
Nov 16, 2015
IPVM

There does not seem any doubt that Hikvision ultimately owns them both. The question is mainly how they are running them? I just sent an email in to them.

U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 16, 2015
IPVMU Certified

Ties run deep.

JH
John Honovich
Nov 17, 2015
IPVM

He's also:

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JH
John Honovich
Nov 16, 2015
IPVM

I am a new proud owner of an ezviv mini. Testing coming soon.

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LL
Louis Li
Nov 17, 2015

Like this pan/tilt EZVIZ wifi cam in my recent China trip.

Was told that HIK is building their cloud services in the US this year. Once launched, EZVIZ products will be offered both online (Amazon etc) and in stores (i.e. Bestbuy)

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U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 17, 2015
IPVMU Certified

Hikvision's just announced Easy IP line does little to reduce confusion between the totally seperate products/brands/companies.

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #4
Nov 17, 2015

IT maybe the same corporate company, but separate business unit with separate P&L. Samsung Techwin is doing the same thing with their consumer line of security products, selling directly to retail channel. It has not hurt the professional channel as mush as they thought it would.

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JH
John Honovich
Nov 17, 2015
IPVM

4, good feedback. That's probably the best (relative) tactic to take.

Two things though:

(1) Hikvision is trying to obscure / hide their relationship to Ezviv. Samsung does not.

(2) Hikvision's core NA market is home and SMB. Ezviv is targeting that same market with similar kits.

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #5
Nov 18, 2015
Isn't EZVIZ built into all of their NVRs?
JH
John Honovich
Nov 18, 2015
IPVM

What's going on, the best I can tell, is that there are 2 Ezviz's now. There was 'Original' Ezviz which was cloud access offering 'built' into their products. And now there is 'New' Ezviz which is a 'self-OEM' brand being sold direct.

U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 19, 2015
IPVMU Certified

I'm thinking, after going thru the press releases in your China Ezviz link, that Ezviz started up no later than spring 2014, as a combined hardware and cloud offering. With their C2 baby cam and things like it.

Then, and this is a guess, not thinking thru that they would want to bring the brand to the u.s, but instead just wanting to add cloud to their pro products, they bundled the Ezviz cloud into recorders and the like.

Then somebody decided to expand Ezviz secretly into the u.s. with Ezviz branded hardware, even though they had clearly given everyone the impression that Ezviz was the cloud extension of Hik.

Why they thought they could get away with it for long, I'm not sure.

UD
Undisclosed Distributor #6
Dec 04, 2015

Here's is a letter from Hikvision USA:

December 4, 2015

To Our Valued Dealer Partners:

Hikvision is dedicated to helping your businesses succeed by providing you
innovative products and personalized support. Together, we meet the wide range of
needs your customers have, from entry-level to enterprise, in virtually every vertical
market. We wanted to introduce you to our new sister company, EZVIZ Inc., and
confirm that its presence will not disrupt your success in the security marketplace.

EZVIZ is a line of DIY consumer lifestyle products designed for residential use. Based
in California, EZVIZ Inc. launched its product line in the United States on October 15.
These products, which include cameras and recorders, are designed to compete in
the quickly growing Internet of Things (IoT) market, joining other manufacturers as
GoPro, Lorex, Dropcam, iBaby, and Nest. EZVIZ’s target customers are individual
consumers rather than commercial users, which is reflected in its pricing strategy,
marketing, and product positioning. The hardware, software, and operation
structure of EZVIZ products are distinctly different from Hikvision products, which
is due to intentional differentiation of the two product families.

In short, EZVIZ and Hikvision are two independent brands that focus on two
different markets, are sold through two different channels, and are serviced by two
separate support structures. Because video can be used for a variety of purposes in
everyday life, both at work and in the home, convergence of video solutions used in
professional and residential settings is occurring regardless of the introduction of
the EZVIZ portfolio. Hikvision is committed to helping our dealers adapt to the everchanging security landscape and provide unique value to their customers.

To learn more about EZVIZ, visit www.ezvizlife.com. If you have any questions or
concerns, please feel free to contact us at partners.usa@hikvision.com.

Hikvision USA Inc.
Hikvision Canada Inc.

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U
Undisclosed #1
Dec 04, 2015
IPVMU Certified

Thanks.

The date on the letter should have been Oct 1, not Dec 4.

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