Client-Side Energy Costs of Video Streaming

Through measurements on our testbed, we show how users of Netflix could make energy savings of up to 34% by adjusting video quality settings. We estimate the impacts of these quality settings on the energy consumption of client systems and the network. If users exercise choice in their video streaming habits, over 100 GWh of energy a year could be saved on a global scale. We discuss how providing energy usage information to users of digital video could enable them to make choices of video settings to reduce energy usage, and we estimate savings on associated electricity costs and carbon emissions.