Most utilities have always had a small percentage of disaffected customers. They write letters to the editor grousing about the duration of a recent outage. They criticize a utility’s tree-trimming practices. They oppose a proposed price increase. But yesterday’s cranky customer is becoming more of an activist today, participating in protests that are aimed at more fundamental utility business practices: the use of coal, the installation of Smart Meters, or the construction of generating facilities—even wind turbines. Yesterday’s isolated, cranky customer has become today’s networked, angry customer. Can utilities find a way to make peace with digitally savvy customers who are “Mad as Hell”?
