Itron Inc., of Spokane, and Verizon Wireless, of Basking Ridge, N.J., have announced a joint marketing agreement under which they will work together to develop secure, two-way communications for utilities that want to employ Itron's advanced metering infrastructure (AMI).

AMI enables utilities to monitor such things as their systemwide energy use and to take steps, including shutting off air conditioners or clothes dryers in customer's homes, to shed load when necessary.

A primary component of Itron's AMI infrastructure, named OpenWay by Itron, is a cell relay that's a router for a radio frequency local-area network. That relay carries information between the OpenWay local-area network and the wide-area network provided by Verizon Wireless' nationwide high-speed wireless data system, the two companies say.

The joint marketing agreement enables a utility to use the Verizon Wireless network to carry signals from utility customers' meters to the utilities, says David Harlow, a senior product manager at Itron.

"They really provide the connectivity piece," Harlow says of Verizon Wireless. "We're not offering their services. They're not out there selling our meters. We'll work together in terms of putting a solution together for a utility. Typically, a utility will have a preference for a carrier."

The joint marketing agreement is about telling utilities that are interested in using OpenWay they can use Verizon's system as part of their systems, he says.

Verizon Wireless, a joint venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone, operates the nation's largest wireless voice and data network, serving more than 80 million customers, Verizon Wireless and Itron say.

Itron has an agreement with AT&T Wireless that's similar to the one with Verizon Wireless that was just announced, says Harlow, who adds that the two wireless carriers "both have near blanket coverage in the U.S."

"Typically, any market we go into, they've already got a presence," he says. "In terms of rapid deployment and ease of deployment, they're a good fit."

Philip Mezey, senior vice president and chief operating officer of Itron, calls AMI "a key foundational component of the 'smart' grid" that's developing for more efficient energy distribution. Given recent federal legislation that provides $4.5 billion in funding for smart-grid investments, Itron's agreement with Verizon is "a big initiative," Mezey says.