Downloading movies to own rather than paying for a short-term rental period will drive video-on-demand spending over the next decade, according to a study released Tuesday by Screen Digest in the U.K. and U.S.-based Adams Media Research. The study suggested that the Apple iTunes model, where consumers purchase content outright rather than a temporary download, would drive movie VOD. "Video-on-demand technology is spreading rapidly, and will become pervasive in the decade ahead," said Adams Media Research's president and senior analyst Tom Adams. "But turning that technology into a substantial movie market is going to require a complete reassessment of the industry's 10 year-old assumptions about VOD."
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...