Dentsu Inc. announced today the partnership with the US enterprise software company Opower and its subsidiary Opower Japan to enhance cloud based client services as Japan moves toward liberalization of the energy market starting by 2016-2017. Opower is a leading company operationg in the field os in cloud-based big data platforms for the utility industry.
A huge opportunity for providers of marketing communications and consumer engagement services
With the liberalization of the retail electricity market starting from April 2016 and that of the retail gas market in 2017, households and small business owners will be able to freely select the power and gas companies they want to use.
In other parts of the world, where liberalization started much earlier, the increase in the number of businesses entering the energy market and the diversity of the tariff plans offered made of the ability to develop marketing communications that closely met consumer needs a competitive edge for any company in this sector.
In March 2015 more than 500 businesses had already registered with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) to enter the electricity retailing business once liberalisation takes place.
Two experienced companies in the consumer engagement field
Opower offers engagement platforms, and provides services to approximately 100 electric power and gas companies all over the world, there where markets have already been liberalized.
Based on the analysis of big data such as personal power usage, the company provides personalized energy-saving advice to consumers, and, by improving the cost efficiency of utilities through this feedback, improves the relationship between the companies and their customers while supporting the optimization of energy balance.
Dentsu is already providing a wide range of solutions such as marketing and promotion services, business development, consulting and IT solutions to a large number of energy-related clients in Japan through its energy sector solutions team DEMS, which was launched in February this year.
