Meter data management systems, which enable utilities to aggregate, analyze, and utilize the data streams from their meters in the field for a variety of applications, are nearly a decade old, yet where they will end up is still very much undecided. The current market faces an inflection point, with changes in focus from billing systems to grid operation efficiencies and more efficient business processes. In the midst of this market transition, a new Pike Pulse report published by Pike Research finds that the two best-positioned MDM vendors are Oracle and eMeter.
“Market approaches to MDM range from minimalist to full-feature,” said senior analyst Bob Lockhart. “Minimalist solutions are those where the MDM vendor simply captures data and provides a system of record for other application vendors to use. Full-featured MDM solutions, on the other hand, include a wide range of applications under a single umbrella. Meanwhile, the competitive landscape is changing due to acquisitions such as Toshiba’s purchase of Landis+Gyr and Schneider Electric’s acquisition of Telvent.”
Lockhart added that Oracle attained the highest overall score in the Pike Pulse report due to its broad MDM product line, massive scale, geographic presence, technical innovations (including those of Sun Microsystems), and integration of MDM with other well-known Oracle products. Joining Oracle in the Leaders category of the Pike Pulse Grid are eMeter and Itron. Each attained their Leader status through slightly different approaches to the same issues. All three Leaders share the common characteristic of consistently high scores across the board in all 12 of the rating categories included in the Pike Pulse analysis.
The “Pike Pulse Report: Meter Data Management” evaluates 11 of the leading MDM suppliers and rates them on 12 criteria for strategy and execution, including go-to-market strategy, product portfolio, partnerships, innovation, global reach, market share, and staying power. Using Pike Research’s proprietary Pike Pulse methodology, vendors are profiled, rated, and ranked with the goal of providing industry participants with an objective assessment of these companies’ relative strengths and weaknesses in the MDM marketplace.
