Smart Meters Create a Huge Opportunity for Data Services in Utilities (Analyst Insight)

Publication Date	July 2009
Publisher	Datamonitor
Product Type	Report
Pages	20
ISBN Number	not applicable
Product Code	DAT15645

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Summary

The introduction of smart metering will see an exponential increase in the volume of data collected by utilities companies. Data centers will have to grow to keep up with the growth of data. At first glance, the opportunities for data services should be immense. However, few utilities are considering this option at present.

Scope

Identifies the potential opportunity for data services in utilities created by smart metering.
Identifies the possible barriers to adoption of data services.
Provides recommendations to most successfully break down these barriers.

Highlights

While growth will be slow, the potential opportunity could be enormous.

Data hosting to support customer portals and billing processing are two areas where traction will be gained.

Reasons to Purchase

Understand what will drive utilities' investment in data centers in the future.
See what is stopping utilities from seeking ownership models to their data centers and data processing.
See what strategies are most likely to be successful in the utilities space.

Content

Overview

Catalyst

Summary

Table of figures

Analysis

Utilities' future investment in data centers will be considerable

Smart metering is the most important driver for investments in utilities' data centers

The visibility that smart meters give in terms of consumption allows utilities to better manage demand

The cost of additional visibility is an exponential growth of data

The growth in data will lead to an increased burden on both storage and server requirements

Smart meters are not the only driver for data center investment

The different regulatory framework creates different opportunities in different geographies

There are clear arguments to support the case for the adoption of data services by utilities

The opportunities will be long term and there are many cultural barriers to overcome

Smart meter-driven data center opportunities will manifest in the medium to long term

... with only a handful of examples of utilities currently procuring data center services

... due to significant barriers to entry

Fears of losing control of quality of service abound

Utilities have not historically used outsourcing solutions

Utilities are traditionally conservative

Security is a great concern to utilities CIOs

Recommendations for vendors

Act soon

Combat conservatism through industry alliances

Demonstrate a commitment to data security

Go armed with strong service level agreements

Choose geographies carefully

Remember that utilities are heavily regulated

Focus on areas of business that are most easily won

APPENDIX

Definitions
Methodology
Ask the analyst
Datamonitor consulting
Disclaimer
Figure 1: Typical demand curve of energy use
Figure 2: Electricity above baseloads becomes increasingly expensive
Figure 3: The least liberalized markets in Western Europe have the most rapid adoption of smart metering
Figure 4: Utilities' objectives for 2009 focus on data and database management, rather than data center management
Figure 5: Security is the highest ranked objective for utility CIOs in 2009