Parks Associates announced new research finding at the 2014 Smart Energy Summit in Austin this week. The results of a new consumer satisfaction survey report that many consumers are nervous about switching to a variable rate or time-of-use (TOU) energy program, thinking that their energy bills will increase after doing so. However, once a household adapts to off-peak consumption patterns, their bills could actually decrease.

Additionally, Parks Associates research indicates that, of the 5% of consumers who have switched to a TOU program in the last 12 months, most consider themselves "very" satisfied with the service. In fact, among energy consumers with free nights or weekends, 53% are “very” satisfied with their overall electricity services, but only 34% without this TOU service responded in the same way.

"The connected home is changing the consumer relationship to all home services, including energy, security, and controls," Kerber said. "This week at the 2014 Smart Energy Summit, we are discussing research and current market trends with more than 250 industry leaders to identify new strategies to engage consumers in energy-related and smart home services.”

The Smart Energy Summit is an annual conference where industry leaders, media partners, and analysts evaluate partnership opportunities, technological and interoperability challenges, strategies for consumer engagement, and deployment plans for energy and management solutions in the connected home. This year, the conference is being held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, Texas from Frbruary 17-19.

For more information on the research findings in this study, click here.

For more information on the Smart Energy Summit, visit www.ses2014.com