Though sometimes it feels like it happened overnight, the digital revolution, the profound shift in how we use technology to connect, learn, and entertain ourselves, took decades. Thousands of cycles of research, development, deployment, and adoption have delivered us an unlimited selection of devices that enable us to do just about anything we can imagine – from watching TV in our living room to watching our pets from afar, or using voice control to order groceries or order new seasons of our favorite show.
But just below the surface of these culture-altering devices and services lies a dilemma: how do we make sure the technologies that make our modern lives possible also make wise use of our energy resources, to avoid excessive greenhouse gas emissions? This is a challenge that video providers, device makers, and environmental groups tackled four years ago when they developed a Voluntary Agreement (VA) in which they committed to purchase energy-efficient set-top boxes.
The award-winning VA, developed in partnership with the Consumer Technology Association and CableLabs, was signed in 2012 with the goal of increasing energy efficiency in set-top boxes for 97.7 million cable, satellite, and telco TV households, while still encouraging device innovation and development of new features. According to a new independent report issued by D+R International, the VA has saved consumers $2 billion in energy costs and has led to avoidance of 11.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions since it was signed. That’s the equivalent of taking 2.5 million cars off the road for an entire year.
When the U.S. Department of Energy closed its set-top box proceeding and endorsed the Voluntary Agreement at the end of 2013, it estimated that the Agreement would save consumers $1 billion per year by 2017. The Voluntary Agreement has nearly delivered on that promise a year early, with savings of $941 million in 2016 alone.
Signatories include more than 92 percent of companies delivering multi-channel video services. In 2016 the VA was named “Project of the Year” by Environmental Leader, a leading trade publication covering energy, environmental, and sustainability news.
Other key takeaways from the report are:
- 98.6 percent of new set-top boxes meet ENERGY STAR standards
- On January 1st 2017, higher energy standards kicked in, leading to even greater savings
- Whole home DVR and cloud DVR offerings are leading to even greater energy and cost savings
Since its signing, the VA has delivered increasing energy savings each of the past three years. Savings doubled by 1.4 TWh in 2014, increased by more than 2 TWh in 2015, and by nearly 2.5 TWh in 2016. These escalating savings are thanks in part to rapid replacement of older-model set-top boxes as consumers flock to new more energy-efficient systems such as Comcast’s popular X1 platform and Charter’s new Spectrum Worldbox. D+R International estimates that nearly three-fourths of all DVRs in the field today were purchased under the VA and that these new models use an average of 40 percent less energy than previous devices. As more legacy devices are replaced, savings will continue to soar.
As we press forward into unknown phases of the internet and technology revolution, one thing is for sure: the VA will continue to encourage energy savings and serve as a model for how to build an efficient and effective solution for state and federal rules pertaining to technology energy efficiency.
The full report is available here.