By John Wilson

If you attended last month’s Management World Americas, it was hard not to leave with two words on your mind: smart grid. Everyone from the TM Forum’s Chairman, Keith Willetts, on down was buzzing about the coming smart grid revolution and what it could mean for the telecoms industry in general and the OSS/BSS industry specifically. As the industry rushes to embrace this promising new technology, it might be a good idea to stop and ask some fundamental questions: What is the “smart grid”? What can it mean for the OSS/BSS industry? Can there be a downside to something the entire industry is touting as the next big thing? The answers to these questions could be key for OSS/BSS players over the next few years.

The first, and apparently easiest, question may prove the hardest to answer; What is the smart grid? An oversimplified answer would be a data-enabled power grid; that is, an electrical grid delivering power to homes and businesses that incorporates self-aware devices supplying data to the power company over a wired or wireless Internet connection. What this definition blithely ignores is the sheer number of devices and services represented by the “smart grid”, a number that is growing every day with each new player that enters the space.

At the heart of the smart grid is the smart meter, a data-enabled power meter capable of monitoring energy use, switching between different pay-rates on the fly and much, much more. Speaking with Power and Energy, CIO of Austin Energy, Andres Carvallo, was enthusiastic about the possibilities of the smart grid; “as we continue expanding our smart grid transformation from within our organization out to the home, we can enable cool things like turning meters on and off remotely.

us to offer time-of-use rates and peak- rate pricing and so on. With this approach, one development leads to the next.” Then there will also be opportunities for customers to sell energy back to the grid using solar or wind generators, usage management to prevent brownouts, as well as new pricing incentives that will reduce usage and lower every one's electricity bill and carbon footprint at the same time. The smart grid is set to change people’s lives in a lot of ways, and that is doubly true for OSS/BSS players.

Will Davis is senior vice-president at Cogo Group, which, in partnership with the Wasion Group, has recently won a contract to supply components to smart meters in China. He sees the coming smart grid, not just as a subdivision of traditional telco OSS/BSS companies, but as something that may come to dominate the industry; with China set to spend nearly $100 billion on its power infrastructure over the next five years, "ultimately, the thinking is that the spending on energy production and distribution -- the grid -- will dwarf 3G spending," he said. But where do OSS/BSS players fit into the picture?