Big solar vs Little solar

Interesting article here from Griston the rise of distributed solar in the US:

"Until very recently, distributed generation just couldn’t compete on cost with Big Solar—massive megawatt solar thermal power plants usually located in the desert... Now that’s all changing... Photovoltaic module prices have plummeted by about 30 percent over the past year thanks to an oversupply of modules and the rise of low-cost Chinese manufacturers."

And it's the electric utilities themselves that are investing, seeing rooftop photovoltaics as a fast (in terms of construction and permitting) and increasing cost-effective option (the article cites a deal struck in Sacramento in which the solar option cost no more than the grid option) for meeting their renewable energy obligations