Utilities have installed more than 60 million smart meters in North America in the past decade.
Now they have to figure out what to do with all the information the devices are generating.
It’s a mind-boggling amount of data. Consider that traditional meters did nothing more than track consumption. They were read 12 times a year by meter readers. In contrast, smart meters bombard utilities with data, often passing along meter readings every 15 minutes, or 35,000 times a year. They also alert utilities to electricity theft and dozens of other useful things.
Source:
http://smartgrid.testing-blog.com/2013/09/26/smart-meters-utilities-harness-the-potential/#more-34580
