Broadband Breakfast Club Environmental Session Prompts Debate Over Systems Reliability

The creation of a "smart grid" for electricity conservation may lead to parallel telecommunications networks by both utilities and traditional telephone communications providers; whether or not this was a positive development was debated at the Broadband Breakfast Club on Tuesday. The "smart grid" enables communications about electric transmissions over that electric infrastructure. Broadband, or high-speed Internet access, has traditionally occurred over telephone, cable or wireless networks. Broadband over power lines (BPL) is a form of Internet access over the electric infrastructure. All of these technologies are competing for consumers and business customers.