Utilities are misleading their consumers by choosing to operate their own private networks, said SmartSynch’s Chief Marketing Officer, Campbell McCool. He added that he had spoken with regulators about utilities’ poor decision to have private networks and stated that they were neither cost-effective nor efficient because it was not the utility’s business to be operating private communications networks.

Mr. McCool was speaking at a GridWeek media roundtable discussion on the use of private versus public networks for utilities. Most panelists agreed that there was room for both a private utility network and services offered by public communication providers in deploying smart grid applications. However, Mr.  McCool wholeheartedly disagreed with any role for utility networks at all, including within smart grid operations. There were no utility or public wireless carrier representatives on the panel. Read more »