Sommario: 

1. Introduzione.

2. L’impegno delle varie aree del mondo sulle smart grid. 

3. I nodi della regolazione pubblica. 

4. La definizione del livello di governo ottimale. 

5. La regolazione basata sui risultati. 

6. Servizi e prodotti a valore aggiunto. 

7. I riflessi sul servizio pubblico. 

8. La regolazione cognitiva. 

9. La tutela della riservatezza dei dati. 

10. Conclusioni.

Abstract:

Innovation and the Challenge for Public Regulation. The “Smart Grid” Case The combination of ICT technologies and energy distribution networks brings innovations of great social impact, which was even compared to what has been achieved through the spread of Internet. The smart grid case, therefore, offers an interesting opportunity to see what are the repercussions of such phenomenon on public regulation. After discussing the definition of smart grid and describing the amount of investments that are involved in it worldwide, the Author analyses the federal-like regulatory architecture which is taking shape in the European context, the evolution of public regulation that is becoming increasingly influenced by the actual outcomes, the services and value-added goods produced by the smart grid, the impact on public services in the electricity sector, the easier use of cognitive regulation, the issues concerning the protection of privacy. The Author concludes that the smart grid, exactly as it happened in telecommunications technology with the shift from the analogue system to the digital one, will have a significant impact on public regulation. Indeed public regulation, while being entrusted to independent authorities, will be required to achieve public predetermined objectives of energy efficiency and thus to be promotional rather than neutral.