Towards Smart Grids: eMeter CEO Cree Edwards (Part 6)

SM: How do you conduct sales? CE: We sell directly and through system integrators. IBM has sold us into several of their accounts. Accenture has sold us in Europe.

Towards Smart Grids: eMeter CEO Cree Edwards (Part 5)

SM: If I understand correctly, you are saying that energy pricing could be much more dynamic than it is today, and that if pricing more accurately reflected demand, it could adequately address supply concerns? CE: Right now consumers pay the average, so it does not matter if you consume at midnight or at noon even

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Towards Smart Grids: eMeter CEO Cree Edwards (Part 4)

SM: What did you do after you left CellNet? CE: I started another company to build applications under the networks. When CellNet went bankrupt, that relationship split. We always knew that utilities would need more data, efficiency with the data, and improvements based on the data at some point.

Towards Smart Grids: eMeter CEO Cree Edwards (Part 3)

SM: Once you had developed the cellular network, did you try to operate it yourself or sell it to utility companies? CE: We tried to sell it to utilities, but the difficulty in the utility marketplace is that the way utilities are compensated is a percentage of assets in the ground.

Towards Smart Grids: eMeter CEO Cree Edwards (Part 2)

SM: How long did you stay with Octel? CE: After nine months I took the idea I had about a computer inside the meter to Pacific Gas and Electric. I showed them the concept and asked them if they would buy it if I built it, and of course they said yes.

Towards Smart Grids: eMeter CEO Cree Edwards (Part 1)

Cree co-founded eMeter Corporation in 1999 and serves as its CEO. In 1984 he co-founded CellNet Data Systems, which provided advanced electricity metering data and communications to utilities via wireless networks. Cree has revolutionized the utility industry, bringing much-needed efficiency and vision. SM: Take me back to where your story begins. What is the genesis

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Towards Paperless Contracts: EchoSign CEO Jason Lemkin (Part 7)

SM: Small companies do not have enough bandwidth to do anything themselves. That is why hosted solutions are so good for them. JL: They also don’t do AdWord searches for solutions. We get our SMBs virally. We convert them at a higher rate than an enterprise because they immediately see the value.

Towards Paperless Contracts: EchoSign CEO Jason Lemkin (Part 6)

SM: What was your solution to finally get more customers? JL: I knew we just had to get out there. AdWords did not work great, but it worked a little. SEO did not workgreat, but it worked a little bit, so we did more of that.