like economy 7 from 70's. its not particularly smart, changing tariff to a schedule. im not denying that is useful, just its very inflated name. "variable tariff" meters isnt quite the same sell.
you've heard about power companies offering to charge more during peak times? charge less overnight? the functionality is there to switch tariffs. smart meters were not pushed just so you can have a display indoors.
there's nothing smart about them, thats just fancy branding. when they work they are simply remote controls for the power companies. their purpose is to enable power companies to switch tariffs according to demand or cut supply.