New Technologies Advance Consumer Control Fact Sheet
Today, most consumers know little about the costs that show up on their electricity bill except that they are higher during the hottest and coldest months. Few realize that the true price of electricity varies continuously in response to supply and demand, and that most bills are calculated based on an average price. Since they can’t see when prices are high and reduce their use accordingly, most residential customers are likely using more electricity than they need to — and thus paying more than they have to.
The good news is that emerging technologies will give consumers power over their electricity use. From Web-based “dashboards” for energy management to in-home systems that store power for emergency use, many of the technologies described below are available for use in residential and commercial spaces today. These technologies will reduce electricity demand, put less stress on the environment and serve as a long-awaited catalyst for transforming the nation’s inefficient, unreliable and insecure electricity grid. Key players behind these new products include leading companies in the telecom, networking, software and retail consumer electronics sectors, with more companies entering the race all the time.
