COMING to a home near you, the Linky is set to be installed in all new houses from 2012 and across France by the end of 2016.
But what is it? The Linky is a device from EDF that aims to provide accurate measurements of electricity consumption and enable remote collection of data without disturbing home owners.
The Linky has been trialled in around 300,000 homes in Indre-et-Loire and around Lyon, however the new system has its critics.
One of the most vocal is the consumer watchdog Que Choisir who say the equipment favours EDF too much, and doesn’t provide customers with additional information, something that it expects EDF to begin to charge for.
While La Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertés (Cnil) has said it is worried by the amount of data the device will collect and the security of transmission of information back to EDF offices.
It is possible to get an idea of when you may have to have a Linky box installed via the website, which also says there will be no cost for installation, which takes around 30 minutes.