What DNP does

The DNP Users Group (DNP-UG), legally a California nonprofit mutual benefit corporation operating under IRS code 501(c)(6), owns and maintains the DNP3 protocol — also formalized as IEEE Std. 1815 — which is the most widely used protocol for electric transmission and distribution communications in North America. DNP3 is also a named standard for distributed energy resource (DER) communications and has been adopted in adjacent industries including water/wastewater, transportation, and oil and gas. The Users Group's core product is the DNP3 specification itself, complemented by a portfolio of supporting offerings: the Conformance Test Review (CTR) Program, security extensions (DNP3 Security Layer, Secure Authentication Version 6, and the Authorization Management Protocol), the IEEE 1815.2 DER Profile, IED Test Procedures (currently v3.1, released November 2022), and a Device Profile Guide. The organization also runs a Cybersecurity Program and an Education program of workshops and member training.

The Users Group is governed by a Board of Directors and operates through four standing technical bodies — the Technical Committee, Cybersecurity Task Force, Test Management Committee, and Test Procedure Committee. Its membership comprises electric utilities, equipment vendors/suppliers, consultants, and individuals (including students), and the organization transitioned from a 100% volunteer model to one with part-time paid staff in 2019–2020 to ensure sustainability. Revenue is generated exclusively through tiered annual membership fees (Utility, Vendor, Consultant, Individual categories) renewed each year, with a restructured VISION 2024 fee model effective July 1, 2024. Go-to-market relies on direct membership sales via dnp.org, the annual DistribuTECH conference presence, LinkedIn, member email communications, and recurring educational workshops. Key strategic milestones since 2019 include the 2020 funded-model transition, the November 2022 IED Certification Procedures v3.1 release, the July 2024 VISION 2024 reset, the February 2026 IEEE publication of IEEE 1815.2, and the May 2026 launch of the Utility Council.

Name

DNP

Legal name

DNP Users Group

Website

https://dnp.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

The DNP Users Group is a California 501(c)(6) nonprofit that owns and maintains DNP3 (IEEE Std. 1815), the dominant protocol for electric utility OT communications in North America. It serves utilities, equipment vendors, consultants, and individuals through tiered annual memberships, conformance certification, and standards development.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Communication Protocol Standards

NAICS

Electric Power Transmission, Control, and Distribution (22112)

SIC

Electric Services (4911)

akta.pro primary industry

Distribution Network Service Providers (DNSPs) / Regulated Distribution Companies (Ring-fenced DSOs) (EUADABAH)

Keywords

• Industrial communication protocols
• OT cybersecurity standards
• Conformance certification
• Smart grid communications
• Distributed energy resources

Headquarters

HQ city

Raleigh

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees from utilities, vendors, consultants, and individual members. The organization transitioned from a volunteer-only model to a funded structure with paid staff in 2019 to ensure sustainability.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The DNP Users Group owns and maintains the DNP3 (Distributed Network Protocol), also known as IEEE Std. 1815, the dominant protocol for electric transmission and distribution communications in North America and a named standard for DER communications. It sells annual memberships that provide access to protocol specifications, security extensions, conformance certification, technical bulletins, and training workshops to utilities, vendors, consultants, and individuals.

Product overview

DNP (Distributed Network Protocol) Users Group maintains DNP3 (IEEE Std 1815), the most widely used protocol for electric transmission and distribution communications. The core offering is the DNP3 protocol specification along with a portfolio of supporting products including the Conformance Test Review (CTR) Program for product certification, security enhancements (DNP3-SL, SAv6, AMP), and technical documentation (Device Profile Guide, IED Test Procedures). IEEE 1815.2 DER Profile extends the protocol for distributed energy resources. Membership provides access to all documents, training, workshops, and conformance certification services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DNP3 Protocol (IEEE Std 1815) specification Distributed Network Protocol (DNP3), also known as IEEE Std. 1815, is the most widely used protocol for electric transmission and distribution communications in North America and is a named standard for DER communications. Adopted in adjacent industries including water/wastewater, transportation, and oil and gas. Accessed by members and used by utilities and vendors globally.
• Conformance Test Review (CTR) / Conformance Certification Program Official Conformance Certification Program managing the Conformance Test Review process and publishing conformance certificates that are publicly posted. Provides implementation verification and certification for DNP3 products from vendors and suppliers.
• DNP Users Group Membership Annual membership program for utilities, vendors, consultants, and individuals providing access to protocol documents, technical committee bulletins, conformance certification, workshops, training courses, and member support services. Tiered by member category (Utility, Vendor, Consultant, Individual).
• DNP3 Education Workshops and Training Educational workshops, tutorials, and training courses on DNP3 protocol, OT cybersecurity, and DER communications, delivered in person at conferences (e.g., DistribuTECH) and via virtual events to members and industry participants.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• MESA Standards AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 January 2019Joint development of IEEE 1815.2 DER communications standard (draft). MESA and DNP-UG collaborate on standardizing distributed energy resource communications using DNP3 profile.
• Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 January 2019Led the collaborative team that published DNP3 Application Note AN2018-001 to help grid operators communicate with DERs. Group included DNP-UG, MESA, SunSpec Alliance, EnerNex, and Xanthus Consulting, funded in part by California Energy Commission.
• IEEE Standards AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDNP3 is standardized as IEEE Std. 1815TM. The Users Group works with IEEE on updates to the standard and related specifications.
• ASEminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for DistribuTECH networking reception and events.
• Triangle MicroWorksminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for DistribuTECH networking reception and events.
• DNVminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent sponsor for DTECH 2026 reception.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Modbus Organization: Independent organization that owns and promotes Modbus, the foundational SCADA/OT serial protocol widely used in industrial and utility environments. Closely analogous operating model: vendor/utility membership, conformance testing, protocol maintenance.
• MESA Standards Alliance: Standards alliance focused on distributed energy resource (DER) communications, a direct collaborator with DNP-UG on IEEE 1815.2 and a key emerging peer in the DER interoperability space DNP3 is extending into.
• UCA International Users Group: Users group for IEC 61850, the main competing utility OT communications standard. Both are nonprofit industry groups that own/maintain a protocol (IEC 61850 vs. DNP3/IEEE 1815) and run conformance programs for electric T&D and substations.

Broad incumbents

• International Electrotechnical Commission (TC 57): International standards body that owns IEC 61850 (DNP3's primary competing utility protocol) and the IEC 60870 series used outside North America; the global incumbent in utility communications standards.
• Object Management Group (OMG): Standards body operating multiple industrial/OT specification programs (UML, CORBA-derived industrial middleware, OPAF). Comparable nonprofit membership model governing industrial communications and automation standards.
• IEEE Standards Association: Hosts the IEEE 1815 family of standards maintained by DNP-UG and the broader Power System Communications and Cybersecurity committee; the umbrella standards body for utility communications protocols.
• PEC (Power & Energy Society) IEEE PES: IEEE's power-and-energy professional society that channels significant standards work overlapping with DNP3 (e.g., PSCC committee). Broader professional/standards body serving the same utility engineer audience.

Emerging players

• SunSpec Alliance: Alliance developing DER and inverter interoperability standards; one of DNP-UG's EPRI-coordinated partners. Competes for mind share in DER communications, partially overlapping with the IEEE 1815.2 profile.
• OpenADR Alliance: Industry group promoting OpenADR for demand response and DER signaling. Adjacent scope in utility DER communications and similar nonprofit/alliance operating structure.

Others

• International Society of Automation (ISA): Professional society developing the ISA/IEC 62443 OT cybersecurity standards directly cited by DNP-UG's security work. Adjacent standards-development organization critical to DNP3's cybersecurity positioning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dnp-users-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about DNP