It’s Hot in Here!
Global warming or not, this has already been a hot summer for many US residents, particularly in the Pacific Northwest, but down in Texas, where they have a particularly unusual power grid, they have a way of reducing the power burden when those air conditioners are going at full blast. The “Smart Saver Texas” program, which trades a chance to enter a sweepstakes for the utility’s right to control your thermostat during period of high demand. While that seems to be a visible ‘opt-in’ program, not all device manufacturers and utility companies make it quite so visible, with language buried in pages of 5 pt type. Some folks have been surprised when their thermostats were changed without their permission, only to find that somehow they were enrolled in such programs that enabled the utility to control their thermostats.
Of course, if one is notified by the utility that such an event will be taking place, they can reset the thermostat manually or just opt-out of the program completely, but officials have indicate that over 600,000 smart thermostats in 23 different states are under utility control, likely with less than that number actually understand that others can control the temperature of their homes. There is considerable debate on whether utilities should have this ability and whether it is the responsibility of the device manufacturer or the utility to explain the ramifications to a customer before they sign up, but there is a big contingent that is fighting to keep the government from ‘entering’ people’s homes through the utility company or through your video doorbell. While IoT is an infinitely beneficial technology it does carry some interesting consequences, which can present issues that we did not think about when we were musing over how great it would be to be able to set your thermostat with you smartphone on the way home.
Of course, if one is notified by the utility that such an event will be taking place, they can reset the thermostat manually or just opt-out of the program completely, but officials have indicate that over 600,000 smart thermostats in 23 different states are under utility control, likely with less than that number actually understand that others can control the temperature of their homes. There is considerable debate on whether utilities should have this ability and whether it is the responsibility of the device manufacturer or the utility to explain the ramifications to a customer before they sign up, but there is a big contingent that is fighting to keep the government from ‘entering’ people’s homes through the utility company or through your video doorbell. While IoT is an infinitely beneficial technology it does carry some interesting consequences, which can present issues that we did not think about when we were musing over how great it would be to be able to set your thermostat with you smartphone on the way home.
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