Most of the work that will go into transforming the current Electric Grid in to the Smart Grid will remain hidden from the average consumer. Even today people pay attention to their utility provider only when there is a service disruption or when it is time to pay the bill. There is, though, one part of the Smart Grid that will touch every consumer: the Home Automation Network. The key question is who will control this network?

The Utilities have taken the first step in this process. They are building their technology eco-system around the Smart Meter. According to their vision, the Smart Meter will be the gateway to controlling the home’s energy usage. However, developing technologies for the average consumer has never been the Utilities’ strong suit. This area has traditionally been the domain of Consumer Electronic companies. Back in May 2011, Google announced the launch of its Android @Home initiative. Although very little is known about this program, it can safely be assumed that it involves controlling all your home electronics through the Android platform. Although Apple and Microsoft have not spoken up about this, they very likely are looking in to this area.

My personal opinion is that the utilities have very little chance of winning this battle. The Utility Business model is simply not suited for the fast changing consumer electronics market. At the same time consumer electronic companies are not known for developing stable technologies that lend themselves to management by Utilities. Geoffrey Moore talked about this difference in greater detail. Ultimately the Home Automation space will have to develop with some sort of collaboration between the two industries.