Other related technologies like demand response, consumer-side controls and energy storage are expected to play an equally important role in distributed-energy networks.

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Changes in electric use by demand-side resources from their normal consumption patterns in response to changes in the price of electricity, or to incentive payments designed to induce lower electricity use at times of high wholesale market prices or when system reliability is jeopardized.

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By contrast, the VPP is a demand response platform that manages load on the demand side to create capacity and other products for electric utilities.

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