Major European ICT and media companies including British Telecom, Tele2 and Vivendi Universal have moved in behind the European Commission's i2010 strategy, backing efforts to create a unified regional regulatory framework and pledging to work together to maximise the opportunities of new technology for the community. Following a meeting with the EC this week to discuss how to give a spur to Europe's emerging digital economy, ten industry leaders said that they would support the basic principals of i2010, which calls for "completion of the internal market for electronic communications and media services, for a more modern and flexible legal framework for audiovisual content, for efficient and interoperable digital rights management and for strengthening investment in ICT." The strategy, unveiled by EC information society commissioner Viviane Reding last month, sets a roadmap for ensuring European Union citizens receive the full benefits of new technologies such as 3G, digital television, online music, VoIP and interactive internet services.
What was once a simple, unidirectional flow of electricity from centralized power plants to passive consumers is evolving into a complex, intelligent network where millions of distributed resources actively participate in grid operations. This transformation, powered by smart grid technologies, represents one of the most significant infrastructure shifts of our time. It promises to reshape how we generate, distribute, and consume energy. At its core, the smart grid represents far more than mere digitization of existing infrastructure. This bi-directional capability is fundamental to understanding why smart grids are becoming the backbone of modern energy systems, facilitating everything from real-time demand response to the integration of renewable energy sources. Smart Grid Market Development By 2030, smart grid technologies are projected to cover nearly half of the global electrical grid, up dramatically from just 24 percent in 2025. This expansion is underpinned by explosive gr...