  With the advancement of the smart grid, the current energy system is moving
towards a future where people can buy what they need, sell when they have
excess, and can trade the right of buying to other prosumers. While the first
two schemes already exist in the market, selling the right of buying, also
known as negawatt trading, is something that is yet to be implemented. Here, we
review the challenges and prospects of negawatt trading in light of recent
technological advancements. Through reviewing a number of emerging
technologies, we show that the necessary methodologies that are needed to
establish negawatt trading as a feasible energy management scheme in the smart
grid are already available. Grid interactive buildings and distributed ledger
technologies for instance can ensure active participation and fair pricing.
However, some additional challenges need to address for fully functional
negawatt trading mechanisms in today's energy market.
