More than 250 executives to attend the ninth-annual event, February 19-21 at the Omni Austin Downtown in Austin, Texas

DALLAS, Feb. 1, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Parks Associates announced today that executives from ChargePoint, Itron, Meritage Homes, Southern Company, and Vivint Solar will be the keynote speakers at the ninth-annual Smart Energy Summit: Engaging the Consumer, February 19-21 in Austin, Texas. The conference examines the changing role of utilities and energy providers and new opportunities to empower consumers with smart solutions to save energy in the home.

"Consumer channel preferences for energy-efficient equipment skews heavily towards energy providers and utilities; for example, 80% of U.S. broadband households would buy solar panels either from the manufacturers, their energy provider, or a company specializing in energy solutions," said Tom Kerber, Director of IoT Strategy, Parks Associates. "These consumer preferences will help energy providers as they expand their service offerings to adjacent energy services. Utilities can leverage this role as the energy experts in the connected home to create new partnerships with homebuilders and manufacturers and to expand into new services."

The ninth-annual Smart Energy Summit will include more than 250 high-level executives in an intimate networking environment. The event, which will be held at the Omni Austin Downtown in Austin, Texas, will feature the following keynotes:

Bryan Christensen, COO, Vivint Solar
Kim Greene, EVP and COO, Southern Company
CR Herro, VP, Innovation, Meritage Homes
Colleen Jansen, CMO, ChargePoint
Russ Vanos, VP, Sales and Marketing, Global Software and Services, Itron
"At Southern Company, we understand the world is changing, and we must change with it," said Kim Greene, EVP and COO, Southern Company. "We have strategically positioned ourselves to be an industry leader in innovation as we build the future of energy. We also have an awesome responsibility to the customers and communities we are privileged to serve. I'm excited to speak to this group of industry thought leaders about our Smart Neighborhood initiative, which is one example of our commitment to robust research and development for our customers."

"As utilities and cities undergo digital transformation, new enabling technologies, sensors and software create tremendous opportunities to better manage energy and equip consumers with more tools to control costs and conserve energy," said Russ Vanos, VP, Sales and Marketing, Global Software and Services, Itron. "Convening leaders and continuing the dialogue about resourceful energy management with all stakeholders will accelerate the modernization of utilities and cities to ultimately better serve citizens."

Conference sponsors include Tendril, Rapid Response, Affinegy, Alarm.com, Austin Energy, Bidgely, Carrier, Innotrail, People Power, Powerley, Trusource Labs, The Weather Company, Whisker Labs, and the Z-Wave Alliance.

Parks Associates is accepting press pass requests for Smart Energy Summit: Engaging the Consumer at http://www.parksassociates.com/ses-presspass. More information about the Smart Energy Summit is available at www.SES2018.com.

Parks Associates will also host a pre-conference research workshop, "The Role of Energy Providers in the Smart Home," on Monday, February 19, from 1:00-5:00 p.m. To speak with an analyst or request specific research data, contact Julia Homier at julia.homier@parksassociates.com or 972-996-0214.

About Smart Energy Summit

Smart Energy Summit: Engaging the Consumer examines the changing role of utilities to help empower consumers with solutions to save energy in the home. The event addresses the potential benefits of incorporating smart products into energy efficiency and DR programs and the opportunities across converging ecosystems for the market for energy solutions, including connected devices, energy management, utility services, and home control platforms and services.