September 2014 – Knowledge Problem

Technology Market Experimentation in Regulated Industries: Are Administrative Pilot Projects Bad for Retail Markets?

Economics, Electricity / By Lynne Kiesling

Since 2008, multiple smart grid pilot projects have been occurring in the US, funded jointly through regulated utility investments and taxpayer-funded Department of Energy cost sharing. In this bureaucratic market environment, market experimentation takes the form of the large-scale, multi-year pilot project. The regulated utility (after approval from the state public utility commission) publishes a …

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The Sharing Economy and the Electricity Industry

4 Comments / Economics, Electricity, Networks, Regulation, Technology / By Lynne Kiesling

In a recent essay, the Rocky Mountain Institute’s Matthew Crosby asks “will there ever be an AirBnB or Uber for the electricity grid?” It’s a good question, a complicated question, and one that I have pondered myself a few times. He correctly identifies the characteristics of such platforms that have made them attractive and successful, …

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A Sabbatical Note

Miscellany / By Lynne Kiesling

Modern life is full of bustle and inattention, with too many activities and tasks and opportunities competing for our limited cognitive bandwidth. Even in the relatively staid academic life this is true; my regular teaching requirements and other campus commitments have meant that my mind is stretched, particularly over the past few years as some …

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