Streaming videos online has become a popular pastime in the past decade. How popular? Here are just a few awe-inspiring streaming stats:
- Americans spend an average of 3 hours and 9 minutes a day streaming digital media.
- We pay for an average of 2.9 streaming services each month.
- Netflix, the leading streaming service, boasts over 260 million subscribers worldwide.
But have you ever wondered how it affects the average household energy usage and the environment when we click “Play,” day in and day out?
In this article, we’ll share recent estimates of video streaming’s carbon footprint and discuss ways to reduce our impact on the environment.
What is video streaming?
Video streaming includes movies and TV shows on demand from providers like Netflix and Hulu, YouTube and other user-generated video content, video conferencing and calling, and apps that utilize videos.
If you’ve been around long enough, you probably remember a time without video streaming. But in just 20 short years, we’ve seen the launch and growth of YouTube (2005), Netflix’s streaming service (2007), Hulu (2008), and dozens of other subscription-based streamers.
On the positive side, streaming has helped to reduce the amount of energy usage and carbon emitted during the various ways we viewed video content, like driving to the movie theater and renting or buying DVDs/VHS tapes.
But even though video streaming is a more efficient way to watch a video, we consume much more content than we used to, and that’s causing concern.
Factors affecting energy usage in video streaming
First, it’s important to know the many factors contributing to video streaming’s carbon footprint. When we use devices like TVs, tablets, and smartphones to stream videos, we’re consuming electricity. But that’s only part of the story. Other factors contributing to the environmental impact of video streaming include the type of device used, data centers and internet networks, the energy mix, and the video quality being streamed.
Type of device
Recent Netflix figures indicate that TV is still the most popular way we watch digital content. The type of device used to view videos can have a large impact. When possible, stream from a less energy-intensive device. Watching on your laptop or phone uses a fraction of the energy required to stream on a TV. Download files when you can. And most importantly, use your devices for as long as you can.
Data centers & networks
The location where all these videos are stored and the Internet networks that bring the content to our homes also play roles in streaming’s carbon footprint. Data centers have thousands of computers using electricity to stay cool and work 24/7. The good news is that data centers and networks offer a tremendous opportunity for energy and cost savings by participating in resources offered by the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP).
Energy mix
Another factor is how the energy that powers the devices, data centers, and networks is made. Streaming videos in France, where about 90% of electricity comes from low-carbon sources, would create less environmental impact than streaming in the United States, which has a low-carbon energy mix of about 40%.
Video quality
High-definition viewing offers a sharp, crisp picture, but it comes at an energy cost: it’s about 20 times more energy-intensive than standard definition, according to one estimate by a team of researchers from MIT, Purdue, and Yale.
How big of an impact does video streaming have on the environment?
Numerous studies and media coverage have attempted to quantify the impact of our preoccupation with streaming. Thanks to the factors listed above, plus improved efficiencies, increased viewership, new demands like A.I., inaccurate calculations, and a slew of other things, this isn’t easy to pin down.
The International Energy Agency (IEA), an independent, intergovernmental organization that provides policy recommendations, analysis, and data on the global energy sector, published a detailed commentary on this topic. It concluded that one hour of streaming video in 2019 is estimated to emit 36g of CO2.
That is approximately the equivalent of driving 1/8 of a mile in a conventional gas car. Let’s multiply this by Americans’ average daily streaming of 3 hours and 9 minutes. For one year of streaming per viewer, that works out to the equivalent of the energy intensity of driving about 142 miles.
That might not seem like a lot for a year’s entertainment. However, experts have estimated that streaming’s combined infrastructure is responsible for 3-4% of the global carbon footprint.
Again, these estimates can vary widely based on the factors listed above. However, they give us a general idea of how individual video streaming impacts the environment and how it adds up when we look at the big picture.
How can we reduce the individual impact of our video streaming?
It’s always a helpful exercise to save energy, help the environment, and minimize our carbon footprints. Here are a few ways you can reduce your streaming’s impact on the environment:
- Stream less content daily
- Watch with friends or family
- Shift some of your streaming from TV to a laptop, tablet, or smartphone
- Support low-carbon electricity by using renewable energy in your home
- Use audio-only calls instead of video chat or video conferencing
- Stream some of your content in SD instead of HD
- Turn off your streaming content when you’re not actively viewing it
Remember, even small changes can make a difference if many people do their part!
Conclusion
Video streaming has an impact on energy usage and the environment that we should all be aware of. The hope is that even as more people watch more videos over the years, technological advances will lower streaming’s overall carbon footprint. In the meantime, we can all be conscious of our streaming habits and make small changes, when possible, to limit our environmental impact.
One way to do so is to support the growth of renewable energy sources like wind and solar power. To take action, use Everything Energy’s convenient search tools to find clean energy providers and compare plans.