This paper outlines the benefits of combining wide-area monitoring and control systems with demand-side management applications for more effective network utilization. Besides a general overview of these two powerful technologies in combination, a technical architecture, and economic benefit in the context of power system operation is encouraged. A case, where a wind park's feed into a neighboring system and wind power generation's non-deterministic behavior caused expensive spot market energy purchase, demonstrates the impact of the proposed wide-area measurement system with ripple control for demand-side management. This example underlines application areas for some typical network configurations with decentralized power generation or dedicated corridors to neighbored systems. It further shows the potential of the proposed load-control scheme with respect to economic, ecological, and reliable power system operation against the background of increasingly decentralized and renewable generation units.