In this first replay segment, Accenture Senior Manager Matt Comte discusses the benefits of setting up an analytics roadmap. He also explains why starting out with a pilot program can help your utility explore the various ways analytics can transform business practices.

Tom Humphreys, who is BGE's Project Manager, Advanced Metering Capabilities, provides an overview of his utility's analytics pilot program. In this second replay segment he also describes the approach BGE used to introduce the analytics initiative, develop value cases and then determine those that looked most promising.

This third segment features Chandra Shekhar Raj, who is Data Analytics Project Manager for Accenture. He drills down on some of the value cases that were implemented at BGE in the areas of theft analysis and demand response, describing the various scenarios involved and results achieved.

In this fourth and final replay segment, Tom Humphreys of BGE and Chandra Shekhar Raj and Matt Comte of Accenture provide more examples of analytics value cases that were implemented at BGE, including voltage analysis and net meter and defective meter analysis. They also highlight critical success factors and lessons learned from these experiences.

Click to download the slide deck used in SGN's March 26, 2013 webinar featuring experts from Baltimore Gas & Electric and Accenture discussing data analytics and how to gain business intelligence from AMI data.

It's not your garden-variety list of smart grid wins this week. We've got some interesting ones you don't see every day, from PG&E's new interval data analytics initiative to rollout of an app described as the "iTunes of smart grid." Click for these and more, including international wins for Silver Spring Networks, Opower and Schneider Electric.

Virtually every utility with AMI is now studying how to pull insights from the data that is pouring in. But rather than custom building solutions, today many utilities want pre-packaged options. Click for details on Itron's latest MDM offering that includes pre-built analytics modules.

As part of its advanced metering upgrade program, Silicon Valley Power flipped the switch this week to provide its Santa Clara customers with free, community-wide, outdoor wireless Internet access.

A new set of specifications for broadband over powerline communications has been approved by the Smart Grid Interoperability Panel and added to its Catalog of Standards. Developed by IEEE, it is intended to support a strong, interoperable and secure smart grid.

What's the answer to energy poverty in developing nations? An electrical connection alone isn't it, suggests Brian Warshay of Lux Research. Click to see why he says solutions must have a low upfront cost, require little maintenance and employ pay-as-you-go services - with the latter most important.

If you've been paying attention to the natural gas boom in the U.S. and the financial advice world's take, the buzzword is "diversification." We think that word needs to apply to electric power as well. Find out why.

More and more people are coming to agree that the regulatory model in the U.S. was well-suited for the 20th Century but is ill-suited to the 21st. Many believe the UK may point the way for other countries to follow, which is why recent developments there bear close watching.

A district judge has dismissed a federal lawsuit brought against the city of Naperville, Illinois, by smart meter opponents who claimed the meters represent safety, health and privacy concerns. But he did leave the door open for a revised lawsuit, which the meter opposition group pledged to pursue.

A group of Stanford University engineers claims New York has the potential to use renewables to supply all of its electricity by 2030. We hesitate to challenge the Stanford brainiacs, but when they suggest there are no technical or financial hurdles, we've just got to. Click to find out why.

The importance of interval usage data for the power industry is a story that needs to be told... again and again. You'll see why after reading today's guest column by Chris King of Siemens. He lists five compelling ways interval usage data for every customer can help utilities achieve maximum benefits from smart meter investments.

We're hearing about strong growth from ABB's U.S. operations on several fronts. The power and automation company reported U.S. revenues rose 26 percent to a record $6.7 billion in 2012 and that its U.S. workforce swelled to 20,000 – up 37% from 2011. Click to see what's behind those numbers.

Utilities today are being asked to do much more, from modernizing the grid and making it more resilient to improving the customer experience and integrating renewables. And to thank them for standing strong during this period of turmoil regulators are... cutting their pay. Click to see what that's about.

We've worried that utilities are giving too much of their operations away to outside companies that handle renewables, energy efficiency and other programs for them. So we were glad to see that a Montana electric cooperative is taking a different approach. Click for details on Flathead Electric's customer partnership on energy storage.

The pros and cons of time-of-use electricity rates have been debated in the U.S. for some time, with much handwringing over whether customers will go for it. As it turns out, a UK trial has shown that customers there prefer TOU and are willing to change their energy use habits to save money.

The stall in smart grid initiatives by investor-owned utilities has smart grid vendors looking to North America's municipals and cooperative utilities. One example: Silver Spring Networks on Monday announced a pre-packaged smart grid solution optimized for munis and co-ops. Click to learn more about it.