In segment three, Jeff Norman of SAIC covers trends in communications technologies and smart meter deployments in the U.S. and some of the next steps toward full range integrated systems. This segment also includes some Q&A.

The final segment features our experts answering questions from the audience, from what utilities should be asking carriers during negotiations to the pros and cons of setting up a private cellular network.

Click for the slide deck used during SGN's March 14, 2013 webinar on cellular communications trends in smart grid deployments, presented with Qualcomm and SAIC.

2012 was a banner year for U.S. wind energy: The number of states providing 10% or more of total available electricity grew from five to nine. While it's great for the wind power industry and renewables initiatives, that speedy growth of intermittent power sources has and will likely continue to raise concerns over its impact on grid stability.

Pecan Street and collaborators are launching a field trial to identify the impact and benefits of new pricing models and other tools designed to move electricity demand away from periods when the grid is stressed. But we can't help wondering: Do we really need another trial?

After an ultra-cautious original plan - and despite problems with meters catching fire - Peco Energy Co. is asking regulators if it can finish up its smart meter installations five years faster to save money. Will other slow-going utilities follow suit?

Market research firms are beginning to record steady growth in the market for smart water meters. We believe the sector - long poised for rapid expansion - is finally nearing a tipping point. Why? This story out of India says it all.

Researchers and companies that need to test their ability to connect to a smart grid have a new, $135 million state-of-the-art facility on the NREL campus in Golden, Colorado. Click for more on the 15-lab facility and its supercomputer.

A small California town has successfully prevented PG&E from installing smart meters inside its boundaries, at least for now. But you've got to wonder: If we protect the rights of those who want to opt-out, shouldn't we do the same for those who want to opt-in?

As regulators and policymakers search for an effective smart grid framework, Allan McHale of research firm Memoori argues they often lose sight of the most important reason for developing one. And unless that changes soon, he predicts the smart grid market will go into decline.

If you're curious about the value utilities are actually realizing from advanced analytics, BGE's collaboration with Accenture is a good place to start. Click for a look at the process they're using and some of the intriguing analytics apps they are running to solve real business problems.

Smart Grid News hosts free "Lessons from the Real World" webinars on topics important to the utility industry. We bring in top experts from the field to provide insight and tips. Click to see our current webinar schedule and registration details.

Evolving energy technologies can be thought-provoking and profoundly interesting. Or they can be a little weird. We'll let you decide where the technologies we're featuring today fit in. Click for a look at new innovations from GE, Bombardier and five others.

IEEE smart grid experts weigh in on what the grid's most important development will be this year. T. Boone Pickens writes about a free market approach that works for energy. Click for links to these articles and two others we think you'll find as interesting as we did.

A municipal power agency in South Carolina picked a smart grid communications provider and Austria's largest utility picked an advanced grid sensor vendor for its smart meter pilot. Click for details on those wins and others on this week's smart grid winners' list.

Boulder, Colorado's explorations into severing ties with electricity provider Xcel Energy have been high-profile, but the moves other cities are making toward independence from their utilities haven't gotten a lot of attention until recently. Click for a look at some of those efforts and what's driving them.

First there were smart meter opt-out fees. Now there's an effort underway in the Maine Legislature to opt out of opt-out fees. Three state representatives introduced a bill this week that would prevent Central Maine Power from charging customers who want to keep their analog meters.

California's Mount Diablo Unified School District apparently has the largest solar installation of any school district in the world - and it's expected to save $3 million annually in electricity costs.

It took a while, but apparently smart grid pioneer Silver Spring Networks' much anticipated IPO was worth the wait. On Wednesday's opening day, the stock jumped 29% over the price the company initially set for it.

New forecasts paint a promising future for several smart grid technologies, among them virtual power plants, which Pike Research suggests are now ready for prime time. Click to find out why, plus see some math on smart meter growth that may startle you.