A updated report highlights the environmental impact of video streaming, which accounts for a significant portion of global internet traffic. While per-hour emissions are low, the sheer volume of consumption leads to substantial overall effects on carbon and water resources. Streaming platforms are taking steps toward sustainability amid rising demand.
Video streaming has become ubiquitous, with Netflix users alone watching 94 billion hours of content in 2024, and Disney+ subscribers logging 28.4 billion hours. This activity comprises 60 to 70 percent of global internet traffic, prompting closer scrutiny of its environmental toll.
Research from the Carbon Trust estimates that one hour of streaming produces about 55 grams of CO₂ equivalent in Europe, akin to boiling water for a few cups of tea. An earlier 2020 International Energy Agency analysis pegged it at 36 grams per hour, thanks to efficiencies in data centers and networks. Scaled up, Netflix's 2024 emissions totaled 5.17 million metric tons of CO₂e, equivalent to driving 18.6 billion miles in a gasoline car. Globally, streaming emissions match those of small nations.
Emissions primarily stem from user devices, not platforms. Netflix's ESG reporting indicates 89 percent arise from device manufacturing and usage: screens at 46 percent, home networking gear like routers at 38 percent, internet infrastructure at 10 percent, and data centers at just 1 percent. Water consumption adds another layer, with typical data centers using 300,000 gallons daily—up to 5 million for large ones. U.S. data centers consumed 17 billion gallons for cooling in 2023, potentially doubling or quadrupling by 2028, exacerbated by AI demands.
Device choice matters: a 50-inch TV consumes 4.5 times more energy than a laptop and 90 times more than a smartphone for streaming. Higher resolutions like 4K use 7 GB per hour versus 1 GB for standard definition. Platforms are responding—Netflix achieved carbon neutrality in 2022 and reduced Scope 1 emissions by 52 percent and Scope 2 by 41 percent by 2024, targeting a 50 percent cut from 2019 levels by 2030. It matches all electricity with renewables and joins DIMPACT for industry-wide tools.
Amazon Web Services aims for water positivity by 2030 with 0.15 liters per kilowatt-hour efficiency, while Google targets 24/7 carbon-free data centers by then. Yet, as efficiencies improve, consumption surges; global data transmission may rise fourteenfold from 2020 to 2030. Individuals can help by opting for renewables, smaller screens, lower resolutions, and prolonging device lifespans to curb production emissions, which account for 80 percent of a smartphone's lifetime footprint.