Newly available and independently validated data from the MyMeter program used by four rural electric cooperatives in Minnesota and from two programs in Massachusetts suggest that behavioral programs in which utilities send detailed information about electricity use from smart meters to customers via a website or smartphone are effective at to encourage those customers to adopt energy-efficient practices.

In the MyMeter program, (1) the largest electricity users significantly reduced their consumption and (2) "engaged" customers who viewed the website for at least six months reduced their electricity consumption by 4.09%, while "passive" users who did not logged into the website, reduced their electricity consumption by only 2.25%.

Independent evaluation of the MyMeter program by Illume Advising also showed sustained behavioral changes, a key success factor, with average energy savings of 2.27% after one or two years of use only dropping to 1.88% after three years.

The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy's A Field Guide to Utility-Run Behavior Programs provides a detailed overview of the structure and results of 281 programs offered by 114 energy suppliers and third parties between 2008 and 2013.

The typical energy bill shows monthly electricity consumption, but the MyMeter program website shows users their consumption in four-hour increments, delayed by 15 minutes, maps daytime temperatures, provides an energy savings target that can be tracked, tracks household energy consumption and changes therein, provides notifications from the utility company about price spikes due to demand peaks and offers customers an energy threshold.

Accelerated Innovations, which distributes MyMeter, works with about 30 utilities in Minnesota, Texas, Hawaii and North Carolina, and has a pilot program in India that provides real-time information on total energy consumption as well as the energy consumption of each connected device.