Demand and supply of energy - smart power conversion not only for lighting

Energy is becoming a scarce good, although regenerative sources are growing. The main potential for future energy management is not first of all to generate more energy but to save energy by intelligent control wherever possible. The costs of smart control for energy saving are becoming smaller than the energy cost savings themeselves. An example for lighting, based on the efficiency of LEDs, even being already much more efficient than the ""good old light bulb"", shows that intelligent control of light is feasible on smaller expense for customers than traditional illuminants with manual switches. The upcoming ""Internet of Things"" will support smarter solutions that have not only more functionality, but also great benefit in costs. Low-cost sensors, energy harvesting, digital control, and even highest integration of power supplies will not be obstructive to provide energy saving based on growing intelligence of control. Decentralized control structures with local wireless communication, additionally to cloud computing and internet-based communication will provide increasing opportunities to attract energy customers to interact with energy providers and energy distributors for lower costs on all hands.