Device interoperability is key to a fair, competitive DER future [Submission to ESB]
Imagine if you had to use the internet - and get permission from Apple - to connect your iPhone to your headphones.
Of course, that’s not the way it works. You usually have at least one option for connecting them directly to each other.
Bluetooth is the easiest example, but depending on who makes your phone, you might even be able to use a classic 3.5mm headphone jack.
The point is, you don’t need to rely on the internet at all to use your headphones with your phone - never mind getting permission from your phone’s manufacturer. In fact, people would be justifiably angry if this were the case, and would almost certainly be taking the matter to the ACCC.
Instead, standard communications protocols like Bluetooth exist so that you’re not locked in with a single manufacturer and beholden to purchasing only their products or their partners’ products.
Bluetooth and that universal headphone jack mean that you don’t need to worry about interoperability; you can pick and choose whatever brands you want, knowing that they’ll work together one way or another.
At this point you’re probably asking: “Why is SwitchDin - an energy technology company - talking about sound setups?” Maybe you’ve already caught on to the analogy.
We’re entering a brave new era for our energy system, where consumer-owned energy assets like rooftop solar, batteries and electric vehicle chargers will become even more commonplace, shaping the way that we generate, store and consume our energy.
Our vision for this era is one in which asset owners are participants in the grid, offering useful services and being rewarded for it through new partnerships and agreements with their energy companies.
This is why we have argued for open, device-level communications standards in our recent submission to the Energy Security Board’s (ESB’s) “Post 2025 DER Implementation Plan - interoperability policy framework”.
The homes and businesses who are investing in our grid infrastructure should be allowed the maximum possible range of consumer choice without having to be limited to picking from a list of compatible brands or devices. Open, device-level interoperability also means that their devices can be coordinated with one another locally rather than requiring internet-based cloud API connections for data and control.
An open, competitive market where no one gets locked to a single brand (even if it does happen to be the most popular one) is not only in the interest of the people who purchase the systems - it is in the interest of our energy system as a whole.
You can read our full submission to the ESB below.