The video surveillance market remains extremely strong, both according to SDM’s 2025 Industry Forecast, where 94 percent of security professionals consider the state of the video surveillance market to be very good or excellent, as well as multiple manufacturers and integrators contacted by SDM for this report.

While 2024 wasn’t a banner year for everyone — with comments generally consolidating around the election uncertainty and inflation/interest rates as a drag on sales last year — individually almost everyone noted it was still overall a good year in the video space, with technologies such as analytics, AI and cloud cited as the driving force.

“The U.S. election created some uncertainty in certain segments of the market, with business decisions occasionally slowing down or speeding up in response,” says Tim Palmquist, vice president, Americas, Milestone Systems, Lake Oswego, Ore. “But what has really stood out to me is how resilient our industry has proven to be, maintaining stable growth even in the face of these various economic headwinds.”

What’s more, one of the biggest issues from 2022 and 2023 — supply chain challenges — was no longer a factor in 2024, allowing companies to focus on the normal design and procurement process without the worry of not being able to deliver on promises.

“2024 was a better year than 2023,” says Brad McMullen, president of products and solutions business, 3xLOGIC, Pacom and Sonitrol, Fishers, Ind. “We are seeing continued growth in the video market. I would call it cautious optimism right now. A lot of customers are looking to upgrade, even still moving from analog to IP. We know the power of video continues to get better and better and that has to do with analytics. What video solutions are capable of now are better than last year and will be better next year than this year.”

McMullen and others cited uncertainty over the election as something that many were watching and waiting for in 2024. With that outcome now clear, that is freeing up businesses to plan for what they want to do next.

“A lot of it had to do with America’s economy and folks in larger companies sitting on their capital and waiting to see what was going to happen,” says Tim Hobbs, director of video sales engineering, Owl Services, a Gaylord, Mich.- based integrator that specializes in the gas station and convenience store space. “We are excited. We feel a positive outcome with the new administration. We have already felt the pendulum shift a bit with Q1 orders gearing up compared to last year’s Q1.”

Josh Dice, president and CEO of Security Alarm Corp., Salem, Ill. (featured on this month’s cover) says his video-related business grew about 5 percent over 2023, with a “fair number of large upgrades.” He cites AI as a big piece of that drive. But like Hobbs, he also says there was a cautionary note that has now gone away.

“Last year at the beginning of 2024 there were concerns about a recession and none of that really panned out. I would probably say I am more optimistic now than last year at this time. Maybe I shouldn’t be, but with the new administration I think that will be great for our industry and the economy in general. We even saw right after the election our business spiked to another level. People had been holding onto their cash to wait and see what would happen.”

Tom Cook, executive vice president of sales, marketing and operations, North America, for Hanwha Vision, Teaneck, N.J., calls 2024 “a conservative year overall,” but notes that in spite of that the video market is probably the strongest growing market overall compared to other security technologies such as access control and intrusion. “One factor is the advancement of AI technology, which is causing manufacturers in those segments to change their design practices. … We’re definitely seeing a lot of positive marketplace behavior and we expect that to continue,” Cook says.

“We expect 2025 to be an extremely good year,” he adds. “The economic conditions are right, and if the trends with interest rates continue, then that bodes well for us, because it’s going to bolster new surveillance projects.”

This optimism is evident in the 2025 SDM Industry Forecast as well, with nearly three quarters — 73 percent — citing video analytics/artificial intelligence as the technology most likely to increase in revenues this year. Video surveillance systems overall (including both on premises and cloud-based solutions) were the second most cited, at 70 percent.

“We see 2025 growing over 2024 due to the continued increase in crime; prior capital projects that were placed on hold; lower cost of advanced hardware and AI software; as well as the increasing ability to address operational needs with existing security infrastructure,” says Mark Barbaric, senior vice president, Prosegur, Herndon, Va.

Read on to see how these trends and others are driving the video space in 2024 and 2025, and beyond, as well as the top challenges and opportunities that surround these trends.

Top Trends & Technologies Driving the Video Surveillance Market

There are many trends impacting the video surveillance space today, but a few truly stand out, according to those polled for this article, as well as a number of outside surveys.

For example, the 2025 Trends In Video Surveillance Report, released in December by Eagle Eye Networks identified six key trends, including more remote video monitoring; more proliferation of cameras in general; multi-sensor cameras; gun detection using AI; low light capabilities to enhance AI and other recognition; and more cameras with built-in AI.

“AI technology will contribute to growth in 2025,” says Dean Drako, president and CEO, Eagle Eye Networks, Austin, Texas. “In particular, we will see weapons detection becoming pretty significant in 2024 and people willing to pay money for it. That will contribute to growth in the industry. Cloud connectivity and the fact that I can interconnect more things and get value out of that interconnection will also contribute to growth … all these things where video and access control in our industry get intertwined in the additional corporate IT infrastructure.”

Let’s take a closer look at a few of the most talked-about trends in the video industry: AI, cloud, and edge computing.

1. Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Business Intelligence. Anyone who attended any trade show or conference in 2024 would be hard-pressed to identify a more popular technology trend. It was difficult to find companies not talking about AI in some way.

Yet while it is easy to get lost in the weeds of who offers which new, cool AI feature on their camera or software, it is what can be done with AI — particularly business intelligence — that is the real game changer.

“AI is definitely on a trajectory to transform our industry, though maybe not in the way people expect,” Palmquist says. “What is interesting is how we’re starting to think differently about the massive amounts of data we collect. Our industry has always been focused on security as the primary objective, with recorded data being a byproduct that is typically thrown away every 30 days. But that’s changing. Leading data insights tech companies are showing serious interest in our industry because they see the potential value in all that data.”

Hobbs agrees. “More analytics tools are coming to the market for things like people and object recognition, allowing companies to be more proactive instead of reactive,” he adds. “It gives you tools to say, ‘My store is too busy; I am understaffed,’ or ‘get to spills faster.’ AI, smart and edge tools will drive the continuous growth.”

Cook says nearly every conversation with customers these days involves AI. “Everyone from the CSO and CEO level down is asking how their organization can take advantage of the cameras they already have in place that are gathering data to do more than security. The big question on everyone’s mind is, ‘How do we go beyond security and turn that data into analytics that can generate real business insights about the future direction of our organization?’”

Eric Salava, chief revenue officer, Verkada, San Mateo, Calif., says, “Applied AI and advanced analytics extend beyond basic monitoring capabilities and offer advanced, AI-powered analytics to make security and safety professionals more efficient and productive in their roles. And as visual data and intelligence are being used across more parts of the business, AI transforms those data points into strategic tools — for instance, tracking occupancy patterns to optimize a real estate decision or linking production equipment to video footage to manage quality control on a production line and identify defects.”

This rising interest in AI has opened up new business avenues for manufacturers and integrators who are incorporating the technology into their solutions, says Fredrick Nilsson, vice president, Americas, Axis Communications, Chelmsford, Mass. “We have a very optimistic outlook for the video market in 2025,” he adds. “We anticipate the market’s increasing investment in the technological solutions that enable people to perform more efficient and impactful work. This move will focus on delivering greater value as businesses recognize the significance of leveraging AI to optimize operations and gain business intelligence.”

AI is tipping the value proposition of video surveillance in the direction of visual intelligence and proactive response, says Chuck O’Leary, vice president of sales, video systems and solutions – North America, Bosch Security and Safety Systems, Fairport, N.Y. “Application-specific offerings for edge-based AI are making it easier for integrators to deploy the technology to solve customer pain points around building security, perimeter security, traffic monitoring and more. With the ability to accurately detect, classify and count objects, opportunities exist to use AI-enabled cameras for advanced intrusion detection in and around buildings, the detection of brandished guns and gunshots to facilitate faster response to risks, and for long-distance detection of perimeter breaches at energy facilities and other critical sites.”

i-PRO Americas, Houston, with global headquarters in Tokyo, is approaching AI in this way, SDM was told by CEO Masato Nakao during the global press tour last November. “AI used to be utilized for post-event forensic searches. We are actively promoting the technology for use in preventative situations.”

This is a future Barbaric sees as well. “Clearly, AI and machine learning will have a large impact on the market. They will enable video cameras the ability to make intuitive decision-making on security protocols, such as dispatching law enforcement, voice-down commands, etc. Quick and accurate assessments will help security officers and law enforcement respond faster to criminal activities or life safety emergencies.”

2. Cloud & Hybrid Cloud Solutions. Another recent survey, The Genetec 2025 State of the Physical Security Report, published in December, found that a growing number of end users are interested in cloud solutions, particularly hybrid cloud, with 43 percent of end users saying hybrid will be their preferred approach within the next five years.

“Adopting cloud is not necessarily easy for most organizations,” says Charles Nguyen, product marketing manager, Genetec, Montreal. “Different organizations have different aspirations. Some want it from infrastructure and others from storage or economies of scale.”

This tracks with what many other SMEs interviewed for this story told SDM. “More customers are looking to adopt cloud-hosted video versus on-prem,” McMullen says. “Traditionally, it was small and medium businesses, but we are starting to see the enterprise looking at hybrid cloud. … What still remains to be seen is what things the customers will pay for and how quickly will the adoption of cloud continue? We have customers still electing on-premise systems, which is great. I think it depends on the use case.”

Drako says Eagle Eye saw solid growth in 2024. “Cloud adoption is accelerating and becoming more mainstream than it has ever been,” he says. “In 2023 people were still debating on prem or cloud? In 2024 it was, ‘I think we need to go cloud’ from the majority of our customers.”

Palmquist calls this “decision friction,” when it comes to the debate between on-prem and cloud-delivered solutions. “We’re seeing some very interesting shifts in the industry, particularly in how new technologies are reshaping traditional approaches,” he says. “The ongoing evolution between cloud-delivered and on-premises VMS solutions continues to create interesting dynamics in the marketplace.”

Salava sees this trend in a similar way to AI, unlocking more business value from video. “There is a lot of enthusiasm in the market for cloud-based solutions and AI capabilities. … It’s exciting to see more organizations embracing the value of cloud-based solutions and the integrations, features and capabilities we are building for them.

“It’s clear that CIOs and CSOs today appreciate the power of cloud-enabled video security cameras,” he adds. “Cloud-based solutions are transforming how organizations use video data, unlocking new and deeper levels of visual intelligence and insights that empower organizations to make faster, smarter, data-backed decisions for applications outside of traditional security.”

Cybersecurity issues are also helping drive cloud — and perhaps also hindering it at the same time. It’s a bit of an ironic joke in the industry that customers tend to adopt or avoid cloud in fairly equal numbers, and for the same reason: their perception of whether it’s cybersecure or not.

For those whose perception is that cloud helps with cybersecurity, Nilsson says, “Cybersecurity tools and features have become increasingly important, with a growing emphasis on cloud-based tools for easier device management. These tools are crucial for ensuring the integrity and security of systems as they become more complex and interconnected. The cloud is also playing a pivotal role in simplifying the use and maintenance of security devices and systems. Though, to fully capitalize on its benefits, cloud solutions need to be open and channel-friendly to ensure flexibility and scalability.”

3. The Edge & Beyond. Nilsson continues, “Apart from the obvious drives like artificial intelligence and cloud-based solutions, stronger edge computing will play a crucial role in transforming the industry. By enabling faster processing and decision-making at the device level, edge computing will reduce latency and improve efficiency across a wide range of applications.

“The improvement of deep learning capabilities at the edge is enabling smarter, more efficient processing of data directly on the device itself,” he adds. “This advancement has accelerated the adoption of edge devices like network video cameras, where real-time processing is essential, as well as physical access control systems, audio devices, intercoms and radar.”

He is not alone in this assessment. i-PRO is also continuing to explore the “edge of AI,” and help integrators to implement that. “We are promoting real-time AI, of course for security and safety, but also vertical-specific,” Nakao says.

“I think edge computing or device computing is becoming more and more apparent, with stronger processing at the edge,” Nguyen says. One reason for that, he says, is that customers tend to shop for the camera first, and focus on how they perform in their particular setting. “If I were putting myself in the skin of a partner I would seek to understand the differentiations of all these camera choices and partner with the right software solution to match what the customers are looking for in terms of capabilities.”

McMullen agrees. “Customers are ready to do video upgrades and are looking to add more video, or add to an existing system. And one of the biggest drivers of that is some of the edge processing and what video can do beyond just traditional security. They can use it for compliance, health and safety and more as they add it on to their existing video systems. They are looking for ways to add to their existing infrastructure to drive operational benefits.”

Dice says customers are thinking differently about video than they did in the past. “The way people think about security now is not an intrusion system like in the past. Now they think of video first. That is what is going to provide the level of protection that they need,” he says. “I don’t know how much they are specifically thinking about all the benefits or technology specifics; they are just thinking video in general. They know it will do lots of things and they are figuring these things out from Ring and other DIY cameras they are using themselves.”

Jon Adams, vice president of sales, DMP, Springfield, Mo., sees a trend for video moving into the intrusion space. “Video as-intrusion is what I’ve heard it called. Companies are putting more resources into selling video in markets where they traditionally would have led with intrusion.”

Challenges & Headwinds

With all of the exciting technology in the video space, you would think customers would be lining up to buy the latest and greatest, but as with anything “new” there are always challenges and roadblocks. Here we take a look at three of the biggest: Speed of adoption, Cybersecurity and privacy concerns, and changing channel dynamics.

1. Adoption Rates. Whether cost, economic concerns or confusion around some of the new technologies, not everyone is onboard with some of the newest offerings, particularly when it comes to cloud and AI. According to a recent survey from Pro-Vigil just 7 percent of end users they surveyed are currently using AI in their physical security strategy.

Some customers are happy with what they have — even those with analog or even black and white cameras — and see no imminent reason to change. For those customers, many are only going to replace when something fails.

“Forever means different things to different people,” Nguyen says. “It is important for organizations to adapt and be able to change when they need to. In the case of cameras, you typically have a heterogenous environment. Standardization [on one provider or type of camera] is interesting in theory, but in reality there are economics and physical locations to consider. Still, devices fail. Mean time to failure changes and not having visibility is not acceptable anymore.”

McMullen adds, “The reason people still have analog out there is it is still working. It is meeting their needs from a loss prevention standpoint.” While newer cameras and systems have capabilities far beyond this, it is often a matter of the customer being able to justify the cost of the upgrade.

“The power of cameras is getting so strong and analytics getting so good and accurate, there is a lot the technology can do,” he says. “The question is, is the customer willing to pay for it? With what we see with all the different analytics available, every customer’s use-case is different in terms of what they want and what they will pay for.”

Drako agrees. “It’s budgets; It’s getting customers to understand [the benefits],” he says. But there is another factor at play as well, and that is the speed of change, particularly for AI. “One thing that was a little different in 2024 was AI is becoming a discussion topic with the customer and the integrator and it is a brand-new space. The customer is asking what can AI do for me? And the integrator needs to have answers. It is not easy because everything is moving so fast and changing every month. Some customers may be waiting for the waves to smooth out a bit in AI before making decisions.

“It’s a challenge getting our arms around AI,” Drako adds. “That is a whole new level of complexity for integrators and dealers to talk about and sell. There is a real opportunity for integrators to add a lot of value, but that will be a big challenge. Why is that? Because now you are developing a system that is actually proactive rather than sitting in a corner and recording. It’s very positive, but complicated.”

Security Alarm Corp.’s Dice has found this to be the case for his company. “Staying on top of the technology changes is always a challenge, but particularly so this year. So many companies are vying for ‘who is doing it better with AI?’ and so finding the right products and getting trained on that technology was a challenge.”

Owl Services’ Hobbs says new technology does spike sales, but not always at big levels right away. Customers often want to try it out on a smaller scale before investing large dollars. “Every year customers budget to get the old out and put the newest technology in,” he says. “When there is a new widget in the market, you see a spike, due to the newness of that, but it does slow back down. Some of our national chains won’t buy thousands every time, but a couple hundred to make sure they like it, before slowly rolling it out. Every year they drive towards buying the best technology they can, but still at a pace they can make affordable.”

Other times, the technology itself isn’t quite ready for how the customer wants to actually use it, or they are not ready with the infrastructure to take the best advantage of it. Hobbs finds this to be the case with cloud. “Our cloud conversations today are really geared around data stored in the cloud and analytic engines, but not a ton of video yet. In the small retail space, very specific to the convenience store industry, their networks are not ready for cloud video recording.”

This isn’t just because they are small. “Convenience stores are not downsizing at all,” Hobbs says. “They are getting bigger every year with new formats, new platforms and store sizes. They never get any smaller. They sell more food, more beer, etc., and that takes more technology to cover that, but a lot of businesses don’t have the pipe to push that out of the store yet. I think we are a decade away from convenience industry recording video to the cloud for the whole store.”

Dice agrees. “Cloud recording is something we haven’t really latched onto here yet,” he says. “Some customers will record clips in the cloud and people like that a lot. But 24/7 video in the cloud is still a bit of a challenge.”

2. Cybersecurity & Privacy Concerns. Cybersecurity is no longer new or surprising for security integrators and dealers, or their customers. But each new technology or product has the potential to “break” the cybersecurity and this will be an ongoing concern for years to come. Privacy is also not new, but AI and analytics have brought it to the forefront both in practice and in some national, state and local laws as well.

“Despite the analytics and their capabilities there are still a lot of questions from end users about people recognition and privacy issues,” McMullen says. “That makes them very cautious. All these analytics you can turn off, but the technology has outpaced a lot of the data privacy laws and a lot of companies are still trying to determine what they are comfortable with.”

Christopher Zenaty, president, Turing AI, San Jose, Calif., agrees. “This often happens, particularly in certain states, with data privacy and compliance. Some states are more critical when it comes to biometric searching,” he says. “I am on the biometric committee for SIA. Illinois is one of the more difficult ones. There is a fine line there. Some law enforcement can use the analytics, but they don’t want to have everyone using the facial search. It is a slippery slope to be careful of how we are using [facial recognition].”

Many companies, Turing included, offer privacy cloaking features that can blur faces for privacy when doing analytic searches, but it is all about what the customer is comfortable with.

“As AI-enabled surveillance becomes more popular, we expect to see [more] concerns around personal privacy and data tracking emerge,” adds Evan Marty, director of product marketing, ADI | Snap One, Melville, N.Y. “There are different laws and regulations on both the local and national levels that determine how things like facial recognition and biometric data are handled and who owns that sort of information.”

Misconceptions about cloud and cybersecurity are also tied in to AI adoption challenges, says Bosch’s O’Leary. “The security industry continues to lag behind other tech industries in cloud adoption. Dispelling antiquated notions about cloud implementation and security will be a key stepping stone to making the latest AI accessible. Emerging legal concerns around the application of AI for video surveillance will drive improved frameworks and best practices. Addressing bias and privacy challenges is key to deploying AI responsibility.”

Cybersecurity is an ongoing challenge. While it is improving in terms of the end user and integrator skills and knowledge, there are still hills to climb, Drako says.

“We are getting our act together a little bit better as an industry,” he says. “Camera companies know what the word is. That’s good. The old-school guys selling DVRs and NVRs from Asia still aren’t giving it much attention, but we are much better overall. Our biggest issue is with integrators who lack knowledge of networking or they outsource the install because it is in a remote location and the network is installed in an inappropriate or messed up way.”

There is still a lot of education required at the end user level as well, even amongst enterprise users, Adams says. “We have a significant customer base within high security projects, government projects as well as retailers and financial institutions. In our conversations with them, cybersecurity is paramount. Helping bridge the gap between physical security, those departments and their needs, and cybersecurity means a lot of conversation and education needs to take place.

“Educating those responsible for the cybersecurity of their organizations on how we can utilize video cloud services to meet the need in a way that protects them, that’s a challenge,” he continues. “Not every company or entity has the same requirements, so it’s very hard to build a product that can fit everybody.”

Nilsson adds that with the rapid influx of new entrants, particularly in the AI space, one thing security integrators can do to help is make sure they are fully vetting these solutions. “Given the mission-critical nature of video surveillance and the heightened need for cybersecurity, it will be essential for customers to choose solid companies with proven track records. … Navigating this growing landscape will require careful evaluation to ensure that customers are selecting the partner with the right solutions that not only meet their current needs but are also future-proof in an increasingly complex landscape.”

3. Changing Channel Dynamics. The 2025 SIA Megatrends Report identified the top megatrend this year as “evolution of the channel.” According to the report, “Artificial intelligence (AI), cloud, technology upheaval, razor-thin margins, new competitors, direct-to-customer sales and delivery models and changing end-user requirements are converging to create the most challenging wave of change the channel has ever seen, felt primarily in the systems integration channel.”

This was echoed by many interviewed for this article, although each feels it a little differently.

“We’re seeing some shifts in how technology reaches the market, and that is challenging traditional business models,” says Milestone’s Palmquist. “What’s particularly notable is how new technologies are often knocking on the end customer’s door first, with the channel being more and more a secondary consideration. This is really disrupting the traditional ways of doing business. There is also the challenge of keeping pace with rapidly evolving technologies. Integrators are having to learn and adapt quickly.”

Cloud comes with its own challenges for security dealers and integrators, 3xLOGIC’s McMullen says. “Customers are asking about cloud-hosting and looking to move to that and it feels like our end users are more ready to adopt it than some of our dealers and integrators,” he says. “Most of our dealers see benefits and understand it, but the recurring model can be different for a lot of our integrators. If you are an alarm dealer this is something you do every day. But if you are an integrator it is not so familiar.”

It’s not just cloud. Dice’s biggest challenge in 2024 was trying to get into the video monitoring space, he says. “Figuring out how to sell and install it have been a couple of challenges this year.”

And of course, there is the challenge faced by everyone in the industry throughout all levels of the channel: the people shortage. “Finding qualified associates to sell, install and service products that are becoming more sophisticated in their capabilities will continue to be a challenge for integrators,” O’Leary says.

Raminder Kumar, director of offering management, Honeywell Building Automation, Atlanta, sees a potential upside when it comes to AI and this issue. “Integrators will continue to experience challenges due to a skills shortage, which will create opportunities to solve this gap with AI, such as chatbot-based help, support, commissioning and installation guides,” he says.

“Integrators are facing some significant hurdles right now,” Palmquist adds. “They’re dealing with the challenge of mastering new technologies while competing against ever-larger consolidated companies, and that’s incrementally changing the competitive landscape. We’re also seeing this interesting shift where new technology developers are going straight to the end customer, bypassing the traditional channel model. But here’s the thing; there are real opportunities in all this change. The integrators who are going to thrive are the ones who embrace these new technologies and find innovative ways to add value for their customers. Those who try to persevere their legacy approach without adapting might struggle going forward.”

Cook agrees. “The biggest challenge for integrators will be continuing to show their value as sales and distribution models change, especially as cloud systems become more popular. … What is the integrator’s value in a cloud model? If you’re dealing with a transparent license, there’s no ‘box’ or physical inventory anymore,” he says. “Looking at the actual ecosystem we have today, the big question is how will the model change for the integrators? They have to adapt and find new ways to add value or potentially risk losing their place in the ecosystem.”

Opportunities & Future Outlook

With the changing channel, lightning-speed advancements in technology and other pressures, security integrators have no shortage of challenges going forward in 2025; but the flip side of challenge is opportunity, and those interviewed for this report were overall very optimistic about the outlook for 2025 and beyond.

Here we take a look at three of the biggest opportunities in the coming year, which not coincidentally mirror some of the top trends: AI & business intelligence, cloud and hybrid cloud, and video monitoring.

1. AI & Business Intelligence. With an increasing focus on video cameras as a means to provide business intelligence and the rapid advance of AI tools, many in the industry see this as one of the top opportunities in the coming years.

“Our biggest opportunity in the next year is the continued implementation of AI software and its use-cases for various market-specific challenges,” Prosegur’s Barbaric says.

Hobbs says his company is using AI today in terms of cash register data. “We do very well turning point-of-sale data to the video,” he continues. “Now we have predictive indexes that help judge when someone is going to steal. It helped cut out employee theft over night. We designed some really good AI tools in the cloud and customers are looking to roll out to their chain nationwide.”

Dice adds, “One of the things we try to do here is when we are talking video with our customers it is not always about security, but about how we can help them run their businesses better. We are always trying to talk about that and show them what they can do, not just for security, but for quality control, or for keeping an eye on machines, and all those things that aren’t necessarily security-related.”

Turing’s Zenaty says his company has high expectations for 2025, in large measure because of the change from reactive to proactive when it comes to the ability to inform customers about what is happening. “The change in the video surveillance industry from you record it so you can see what happens, to now we are using AI to watch it and inform you exactly when it is happening so you can do something about it, is a pivotal, massive change. That will be ongoing from 2025-2027, but it really starts to happen in 2025.”

Nilsson and others also point to the huge interest in the technology from outside the security industry as something that will help drive it forward. “The continued interest and investment in fields like computer vision from major IT companies such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft will have profound implications for the video surveillance industry,” he says. “Their contributions to AI will help push the boundaries of what is possible, creating new opportunities for automation, security and business intelligence in the market.”

Milestone’s Palmquist agrees. “Also exciting is the unprecedented interest from technology companies that historically might not have given this industry a second look. These new players are bringing fresh perspectives and innovative technologies that aren’t constrained by legacy thinking. This injection of new ideas, particularly around AI and automation, will expand opportunities. It’s a sign that the security industry has reached a scale that’s attracting new attention from new technology innovators.

“Personally, I believe we’re going to see entirely new use cases and value streams emerge that we haven’t thought of before,” he adds. “When you combine smart people finding new ways to extract value from this data with new AI tools to analyze it, that’s where the real transformation is going to happen. It’s not just about better security anymore. It’s about turning that data into actionable business insights.”

Video security as a strategic business enabler is one of the top expectations Verkada’s Salava sees coming up. “The video security market will continue to grow in importance to organizations well beyond just security and safety. As business leaders recognize this value, pitching video security as visual intelligence and a strategic business enabler will open up previously constrained investments,” he predicts.

“AI is transforming the video security technology in ways that were hard to imagine just a few years ago,” Salava adds. “Today we’re using AI to set alerts for specific behavior and to track down footage in seconds; but this technology is quickly evolving. This is incredibly exciting. As this technology continues to evolve, we expect to see new capabilities and features that help organizations proactively identify and prevent potential threats, shifting the focus from responding to incidents, to stopping them before they happen.”

2. Cloud & Hybrid Cloud. With today’s options in the world of cloud, including a variety of architectures designed to fit a multitude of customer needs, and the potential RMR opportunities it creates for the security integrator, it is no surprise that this is another opportunity many see as truly opening up in the coming years.

“For dealers building that recurring base, the more they can build that, the more stable their business will be,” McMullen says. “That helps offset some of the peaks and valleys. And certainly with all of the mergers and acquisitions, that recurring base is also a very good valuation metric for dealers. If you are looking to build a business, the more you build that [RMR], not only is it more recession-proof, but it also increases your valuation.”

McMullen also predicts the cost of chips, and of cloud storage will come down as volume grows, which will also help with economies of scale.

Zenaty encourages security dealers and integrators to look towards the cloud — the sooner the better, even before this occurs. “Years ago when video went from analog to IP, some people thought IP was never going anywhere. A lot of those guys are out of business now or could never catch up. I think the cloud is similar. … The adoption of cloud video is moving significantly faster than the adoption of IP cameras in the early 2000s.

“The business opportunity for integrators is the ones who start to adopt the concept that video is moving to the cloud will be able to capture that market share much faster than the others, because the end users are asking for it. … The opportunity is for integrators to adopt it earlier and not have to end up playing catch up.”

Cook agrees. “I don’t see many major challenges that could slow the growth of the video market in 2025, but companies will need to adapt to the changes created by technology. Cloud-based systems have finally taken hold, but people are still evaluating and asking themselves: ‘Do I want to push my surveillance to the cloud or stay with an on-prem system? Can I do a hybrid system?’ Ultimately it will be similar to choosing an electric, gas or hybrid car. Eventually we’ll move to electric but for now more people are comfortable with a hybrid option. I see a similar approach when we talk to our end users [about cloud video].

“I think that’s where you are going to see the market reside for a while before ultimately pushing more toward the cloud,” he adds. “It will happen; it will just take time.”

3. Video Monitoring. This technology just keeps growing in interest both from end users and from dealers and integrators. The opportunity was big enough that last year’s annual Barnes Buchanan conference devoted a good amount of time to explaining both why and how attendees should consider it. And 63 percent of the 2025 SDM Industry Forecast respondents are already doing just that, with another 47 percent planning to offer it in the next two years.

One such company is Security Alarm Corp., Dice says. “One of our goals is to install one video alarm monitoring system per week,” he explains. “At the end of 2025 I want 52 video monitored systems. It is a different way of thinking about an intrusion system. It is not your normal thing, but I really believe that is where the market is going. In five or 10 years, I don’t think we are going to install motion sensors. We have some pretty good incentives to help try to motivate our sales guys to sell and customers to latch onto it.”

One part of that offering, he explains, is health monitoring of systems, servers and cameras. “So many people don’t realize they have a problem until they go to play their video back and realize it isn’t there,” he says.

DMP’s Adams agrees video monitoring is something integrators should seriously look at. “One of the biggest opportunities for integrators in the next year is to implement analytics, specifically those that report to the monitoring center. They need to avoid creating a further chasm between their monitoring services and video services. It’s not the same today as it was even five years ago, when it was very complex for a monitoring center to monitor video. You had to have separate servers. That’s just not the way it is today.”

Adams cautions, however, that it isn’t something you can just try and stop if it doesn’t work. “So the opportunity is that you can implement video services in an easier, lower cost manner with your monitoring center, but you can’t abandon it. If you do, you’re not helping solve the false alarm problem.”

Dice is optimistic that his goal is realistic, adding that overall upgrades are also an opportunity in general. “There is still a huge potential for upgrades of existing systems, going back to our existing customers and demonstrating new technology and the huge untapped potential.”

Barbaric sees a similar upside to 2025, no matter which new technology is being offered. “Prosegur is very optimistic about 2025, as we are seeing end users being more educated and informed on the cost-benefit of upgrading their technology infrastructure to address their specific needs. There is not a better time to upgrade legacy systems that are failing and are costly to maintain.”

xxArtificial Intelligence (AI) & Business Intelligencexx
xxxAnyone who attended any trade show or conference in 2024 would be hard-pressed to identify a more popular technology trend. It was difficult to find companies not talking about AI in some way.

Yet while it is easy to get lost in the weeds of who offers which new, cool AI feature on their camera or software, it is what can be done with AI — particularly business intelligence — that is the real game changer.

“AI is definitely on a trajectory to transform our industry, though maybe not in the way people expect,” Palmquist says. “What is interesting is how we’re starting to think differently about the massive amounts of data we collect. Our industry has always been focused on security as the primary objective, with recorded data being a byproduct that is typically thrown away every 30 days. But that’s changing. Leading data insights tech companies are showing serious interest in our industry because they see the potential value in all that data.”xxx