The LA Department of Water and Power says it will soon begin to install more than 3,400 of the highly advanced meters at office buildings, large retail and manufacturing centers, and other types of properties that use massive amounts of power. Other utilities will install the machines as they become available.

A traditional electricity meter measures only how much power is actually used. Real-time meters do that too, but also measure when the power is used.

Wholesale electricity costs more during hours of peak usage. So, the real-time meters allow building owners and businesses an opportunity to save money by shifting their energy use to lower-cost times of the day and by conserving during high-demand hours.