Smart meters for smart cities

Abstract

Increasing demands of electricity require innovative technological solutions that can provide better alignment of energy demand and supply. Consequently, smart metering technology, which is the Internet of Things-based application service, is gaining popularity among electricity industries. The smart metering technology allows two-way information flows between the electricity supplier and the customer, thereby interacting with in-house appliances. Despite numerous benefits, smart meters continue to struggle for widespread consumers’ acceptance. In order to promote the successful deployment of smart meters, research is needed to achieve a better understanding of consumers’ acceptance of smart meters. The existing studies did not provide sufficient empirical evidence of factors affecting smart meter acceptance, specifically related to issues regarding consumers’ concerns about smart meters. Neglecting these issues may hamper the full rollout of smart meters. Motivated by these concerns, a smart meter acceptance model is developed to identify factors influencing smart meter acceptance among residential consumers. This study is based on the theoretical perspective of positivism, in which a quantitative methodology is used to investigate the correlational paths. The smart meter system acceptance model was developed as a group of hypotheses, then examined using quantitative empirical data. A cross-sectional research design was used in this study. Prior to the final data collection, a pilot test was conducted to validate the instrument using convenience sampling, while content validity was established by gathering expert opinions to assess the quality of the items. Data were collected using a survey questionnaire from smart meters consumers who have had experience in using smart meters in Melaka and Putrajaya. The study findings indicate that the acceptance model for smart meters achieved an acceptable fit with the data. For the successful deployment of smart meters, decision-makers need to know the issues that influence users’ decisions to use smart meters so they can take them into account during the deployment phase. Why people accept new technology is a common question of both practitioners and researchers. Therefore, answering this question may help them predict the users' response to the new technologies. This book of smart meter acceptance enhances the understanding of both researchers and practitioners in their planning of smart meters adoption, leading to better acceptance of smart meters. Furthermore, this study extends the theory of UTAUT2 to other technologies; hence, increasing its applicability and generalisability in a different context. xi