Towards environmentally friendly video streaming
It is a reality that in recent years video streaming has increased significantly, a fact that we notice with the rise and popularity of platforms such as Netflix, Amazon prime and HBO max among others, which have become an important part of the entertainment of much of the world's population. And considering that videos are among the most data-intensive types of web content, the energy consumption required for video streaming and the associated greenhouse gas emissions are becoming increasingly relevant to global warming.
Video streaming has increased significantly, and is beginning to have an impact on the environment. Source: rawpixel.com.
When we talk about video streaming we refer to the action of watching videos from sources accessible via the Internet, so that the product is enjoyed at the same time it is downloaded, which can be from video on demand (VoD) platforms such as YouTube, subscription VoD platforms such as Netflix, and even from social networking platforms.
According to a Comscore study, in South American countries such as Argentina, Chile and Ecuador, more than 70% of respondents own a TV connected to the Internet, nine out of 10 have used a streaming service in the last month, almost half spend about 14 hours a week enjoying streaming content and almost a quarter of respondents spend more than 14 hours a week watching this type of content.
It is already commonplace for people to spend several hours a week enjoying streaming content. Source: rawpixel.com.
On the other hand, it is estimated that video streaming accounts for 60% of Internet traffic, and that one hour of streaming can generate approximately 420 g of carbon dioxide equivalent, according to a 2019 study by The Shift Project, digital technologies accounted for 4% of carbon dioxide emissions in the world, although it seems small, it compares to the emissions generated by all civil air traffic, and with the sustained growth that these types of services have registered, the global emissions generated by video streaming could double by 2025, to a share equivalent to that of the world's fleet of light vehicles. Seen in this light, this is something to be taken into account and corrective action should be taken.
Additionally, the evolution of the volume of data on the Internet is also driving the development of the entire infrastructure necessary for its transmission, as the user becomes increasingly demanding with the download time, giving rise to new uses and applications that only make us more voracious for data. That is why video streaming represents a high percentage of Internet traffic, not only because we consume more and more videos, but also because of how dense they are, to get an idea, the transmission of 10 hours of HD movies is a data transmission larger than all the English articles in Wikipedia.
Streaming video represents a large percentage of the data volume on the Internet. Source: publicdomainpicture.com.
Against this backdrop, it is obvious that streaming service providers, consumers and authorities must join forces to reduce the CO2 emissions associated with video streaming.
And how can we reduce the energy consumption associated with streaming? A team of scientists from the Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU) proposes three different approaches: firstly, they consider that the infrastructure must be improved to enable more environmentally friendly video streaming, for this they suggest that data centers should be adapted to be more energy efficient and to operate using renewable energies; providers and governments should establish an appropriate framework to carry out this action, this action should also address the device used by the end user, seeking to lengthen the life cycle of the same to reduce the material footprint of these.
Secondly, it is proposed to drive sustainable behavior, for which service providers can configure various more sustainable design options, such as default settings that display promotional videos in low resolution or an audio-only option for music videos and podcasts.
Third, individual users must be prepared to be part of the solution and adopt environmentally friendly practices. For the end user, a sufficiency strategy should be followed by reducing the duration of transmissions or increasing the efficiency of transmission to reduce the impact per hour, for this improving the efficiency of the device used is key, or even suggest using smaller screens and lower resolution, watching videos on a tablet has less impact than using a smart tv.
Watching videos on a small screen has less impact. Source: rawpixel.com.
Informing the user about the impact of their form of consumption can also help, according to the authors, when people have references of the carbon footprint of their activities they tend to opt for the most environmentally friendly alternative.
Well friends, I hope you liked the information on the impact that video streaming is starting to have. See you next time!