Because almost every home is wired, strategies for home networking based on coax, phone, and power lines shouldn’t be overlooked.

The HomeGrid Forum’s G.hn standard has been gaining ground fast, with both National Institute of Standards and Technology approval for smart grid apps and United Nations International Telecommunication Union (ITU-T) ratification coming within the last month. “G.hn is a technology that gives new use to cabling that most people already have in their homes,” said Malcolm Johnson, director of ITU’s Telecommunication Standardization Bureau. “The array of applications that it has the potential to enable, including energy-efficient smart appliances, home automation, and telemedicine devices, is remarkable. The sheer weight of industry support behind this innovation is testament to the extraordinary potential of this standard to transform home networking.”

In a related breaking story, two of the main supporters of the HomeGrid Forum and G.hn have agreed to merge, with Sigma Designs acquiring CopperGate Communications. Sigma provides media processors for the digital home, and adding CopperGate’s home networking technology should make their portfolio more interesting. G.hn-compliant silicon should appear in 2010.