Huawei sees an opportunity in the industrial internet of things, so its buying a U.K. company specializing in sensor and meter networking for a reported $25 million.…
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Weightless SIG shelves white spaces, but it has new internet-of-things spectrum in mind
TV white spaces haven't emerged as global networking band like Weightless had hoped. So now it's planning to build its internet-of-things connectivity network on the same industrial bands used by ZigBee, Z-Wave and Sigfox.…
Read MoreBT trials white-space system for connecting smart cities
The British telco is playing around with a pioneering platform that's designed to be the connectivity glue for smart cities.…
Read MoreStartup Utilidata’s algorithms could make the power grid smarter
Analytics, sensors, networking -- Utilidata is bringing the tools of IT to the last mile of the power grid and in the process could make it operate more efficiently.…
Read MoreThe U.K.’s smart meter plan kicks into high gear
By the end of the decade almost all of British homes are supposed to get smart, digital, connected utility meters installed. And the plan is seeing some large contracts handed out to vendors like Landis+Gyr and Telefonica.…
Read MoreAquamatix thinks it can solve the water crisis with the internet of things
Aquamatix, a Structure: Europe LaunchPad company based in London, is trying to improve the world's water networks with lots and lots of sensors. Fixing outdated infrastructure is expensive, but real-time data from deep inside can help target specific problems.…
Read MoreSanta Clara launches free outdoor Wi-Fi on backs of smart meters
Here's a clever idea: Piggyback the installation of connected, smart utility meters with free Wi-Fi service for outdoor use. That's exactly what the City of Santa Clara is doing.…
Read MoreThe rent is too damn high, but big data means the power bill isn’t
Rent prices are higher than ever, but a growing number of startups are working to analyze our homes' energy use so we can save money by using less power. Their approaches might differ, but data and analytics are the ties that binds them all.…
Read MoreEU gets closer to new energy efficiency, smart meter requirements
By September the European Union may have a new energy efficiency strategy in place. On June 14 negotiators struck a provisional deal on the proposed new EU energy efficiency directive (the “Third Energy Efficiency Directive”). Final approval is likely.…
Read MoreSilicon Labs to buy Ember for $72M for Internet of things
The over a decade-old company that makes the building blocks — chips, gear and software — for ZigBee-based wireless networks is finally being acquired. Austin-based chip company Silicon Labs announced on Monday that it has acquired Boston-based Ember for $72 million.…
Read MoreSmart meter security: the human element
Utilities and companies that make smart meters and related technology must tighten their “human security measures.” This includes planning for the worst case: rogue employees.…
Read MoreEMC steps in to fund Silver Spring Networks
Of the $30 million that I reported that smart grid company Silver Spring Networks is raising, $24 million of that will come from storage and IT giant EMC.…
Read MoreSmart meters now make up 13 to 18% of meters in U.S.
You might only read about smart meters when media reports cover people pushing back on them, but smart meters are steadily being installed across the U.S. The penetration rate of smart meters has jumped from 6.5 percent to 13-18 percent, according to a report from FERC.…
Read MoreGroupon’s $12.6B valuation compared to greentech (it’s sad)
Looks like Groupon will go public on Friday morning at $20 per share, giving it a valuation of $12.6 billion for its online coupon business. Let's compare it to some of the greentech startups and big energy firms and try not to get disturbed.…
Read MoreThere will be 600M smart meters by 2016
The Internet of energy is rapidly approaching. According to research firm Berg Insight, there will be 602.7 million smart meters installed throughout the world by 2016. That represents a compound annual growth rate of 26.6 percent between 2010 and 2016.…
Read MoreSolar: Now for renters, too
California regulators have approved a program, called virtual net metering, for residents who until now have been underserved by the state’s popular solar incentive program.…
Read MoreSilver Spring’s IPO and the 2011 smart grid landscape
What does Silver Spring Network's potential IPO mean for the smart grid sector as a whole?…
Read MoreCalifornia utilities lay out smart grid roadmaps
Last week saw California’s big three utilities release in-depth smart grid deployment roadmaps, giving smart grid companies about the closest thing to a detailed plan of attack that they could ask for.…
Read MoreGoogle pulls the plug on PowerMeter energy tool
Google has officially pulled the plug on its web energy management tool PowerMeter. The project, which Google launched two years ago, just "didn't catch on the way we would have hoped," said Google.…
Read MoreHow Federal Legislation Could Change Digital Energy Data
Will utility customers across the U.S. be legally entitled to their own energy usage data? We’ve already seen how California is planning to tackle that tricky subject, and a Senate bill announced last week would bring the same issues to a national stage.…
Read MoreSensus Lands $675M for Star — not Mesh — Smart Grid
Sensus is the only one of the big five smart meter giants using a licensed star network, rather than an unlicensed mesh network, to connect smart meters. Now it has $675 million in debt financing to expand that technology.…
Read MoreHow California’s Smart Grid Privacy Ruling Will Affect the Industry
The California Public Utility Commission is the first major regulator to issue such sweeping guidance on how data privacy should shape the smart grid. Here is how the ruling will affect the three big California utilities, as well as tech companies, startups and telcos.…
Read MoreLandis+Gyr at Any Price? Smart Meters’ Second Act
Landis+Gyr is on the auction block, and big smart grid suitors like General Electric, Toshiba and Honeywell ABB are rumored to be interested in paying $2 billlion-plus for the smart meter giant. Strategic buyers could find value by integrating into their own lines of business.…
Read MoreSmart Grid 3.0: Getting There from Here
A new report describes the idea of the "Smart Grid 3.0," which will connect mobile devices and location-based services in real time, and critically, an ecosystem of applications that can run across multiple utility networks.…
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