Apps for Energy Public Voting Starts Today!

From DOE energy blog:

Apps for Energy Public Voting Starts Today!

May 17, 2012 - 3:53pm

The Energy Department's digital team tested out Apps for Energy submissions in preparation for public voting. | Photo by Hantz Leger.

Erin R. Pierce

Digital Specialist, Office of Public Affairs

How can I participate?

• View the Apps for Energy submissions and vote for your favorite!

Back in April, we launched Apps for Energy -- challenging developers to build mobile and web applications that bring Green Button electricity data to life. You answered our call -- sending in innovative, creative and fun apps that help consumers make informed decisions about their energy usage data in ways that save energy and money.

Now that Apps for Energy submissions are in, we want your input! Starting today, you can vote for your favorite Apps for Energy submissions as part of our public voting contest.

To participate, visit our challenge page at appsforenergy.challenge.gov. There, you can browse our submission gallery and view photos, videos and detailed descriptions for more than 50 web and mobile applications.

Your vote will help determine the Grand Prize and Second Place winners for the Apps for Energy Popular Choice Awards. You can vote once per day, for as many submissions as you’d like until the close of public voting on May 31, 2012.

Want to share feedback on your favorite apps? Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter (#appsforenergy) to share your thoughts. We’ll be listening.

Good luck developers!

Apps for Energy Update

Post from the DOE blog.

To view video and read post, click the link below:

http://energy.gov/articles/apps-energy-update

The Booming App Economy

The Booming App Economy

March 30, 2012 - 11:35am

Apps for Energy offers $100,000 in cash prizes to the developers with the best energy-focused apps. Design by Hantz Leger.

Erin R. Pierce

New Media Specialist, Office of Public Affairs

What are the key facts?

• The Energy Department taps into the creativity and ingenuity of the booming App Economy w the first ever Apps for Energy challenge
• Apps for Energy offers $100,000 in prizes to developers with the best Green Button apps
• 27 million households have access to their electricity usage data via Green Button

The ever-increasing demand for new mobile and web programs and the developers who build them are the driving forces behind a rapidly growing industry – the "app economy."

In just a few short years, this new industry has established itself as a formidable job creator. Since the iPhone's introduction in 2007, the app economy is estimated to have created nearly 500,000 jobs in the U.S., according to a study released by TechNet, an advocacy organization for the technology industry.

In addition to fostering job growth, the app economy acts as a catalyst for a rising wave of innovation. Well-documented Application Programming Interfaces, open source software, and low-cost tools make it easy for app developers to innovate and test out new ideas.

The Energy Department supports the creation and commercialization of new ideas, with programs that make it easier for companies to use the technologies developed at our National Labs, and with grants to companies that are working on innovative technologies. The Energy Department’s Apps for Energy competition brings this same commitment to the app economy, offering cash prizes to the developers of the best new energy-focused applications.

In the case of Apps for Energy, the challenge at hand is helping consumers get the most out of their electricity usage data. Through the Green Button initiative, millions of Americans can now access their electricity usage data online – straight from their utility or electricity supplier. This data comes in standard, open format, and we're challenging app developers to combine it with other data sets, models, analysis, and sharing tools to create an app that helps utility customers understand their energy usage.

Since its launch, 12 utilities have committed to providing more than 27 million Americans with their electricity data via Green Button, with Reliant being the latest utility to roll the program out.

Companies are proving the viability of Green Button data. FirstFuel Software – a commercial building energy analytics company – recently announced that it will use Green Button data to perform comprehensive, energy assessments of commercial buildings. Technology companies, such as Tendril and Opower, also have plans to build products compatible with Green Button data.

Even as more companies get involved, there is still enormous potential to leverage Green Button data.  Developing applications and services to help consumers understand and control their energy use is a field ripe for American innovation. We’re looking forward to seeing how developers will bring Green Button data to life.