As I contemplated the term smart grid, it occurred to me that I was hearing some familiar overtones to my past. In telecom I have to say my reeducation has been hard. As I write about innovative services, I have a tendency to analyze the call flow from the perspective of the Advance Intelligent Network [AIN] and when talking about quality, my history with Asynchronous Transfer Mode [ATM] makes me want to draws lines in the cloud rather than throw enough bandwidth at it.

So with this history as I think about Automatic Meter Infrastructure [AMI] I see the same “core” problem. David Isenberg’s Rise of the Stupid Network probably needs to be sent to every utility in the nation.

The problem the utilities face with meters is that they can’t expect the consumer to be a solitary block of demand. The innovation genie has to be let out of the bottle and the meter needs to be a gateway and not an end point. I know that the words said about the smart grid seem to acknowledge that, but there is a funnel mentality that hits the GridHead (My BellHeads counterpart).

So here is the point of this article: is it possible to create a network of arbitrage with renewable energies like we had for the phone network?  I don’t think this will be accomplished via the smart grid discussions, but with the innovators on the M2M side of the equation. M2M focuses on the cost reduction at the end point not on the grid and therefore it’s more likely to generate a quicker ROI.

Chairman Genachowski points out that “M2M technology is at the heart of the smart grid – empowering efficient energy distribution and improving network reliability. Connected cars enable remote diagnostics that let you know when your car needs to be serviced. Remote sensors also monitor traffic conditions, which can be sent to your car. Companies can track their fleets in real time, reducing breakdowns and saving energy.”

These are the big moves that make for great statistics, but where the innovators are more likely to start is the opportunities afforded us by his statement “Including releasing substantial unlicensed spectrum for the next generation of Wi-Fi, machine-to-machine communication and other innovations. Including fostering greater efficiency in technology and software and spurring dynamic spectrum sharing and secondary markets.”

This is a reference to his decision on White Space, which unfortunately is being attacked by his other goal of the Incentive Spectrum (News - Alert) Auction

At the Super WiFi event in Austin we showed that the innovators are out there working on bringing solutions to the edge. At Regulatory 2.0 we showed that the Incentive Auction has taken an ugly turn in taking back spectrum from White Space. We hope Senators Hutchison and Rockefeller and their counter parts recognize the value of the edge and keep White Space available for the Rise of the Stupid Grid.