Climate change challenges require a notable decrease in worldwide greenhouse
gas (GHG) emissions across technology sectors. Digital technologies, especially
video streaming, accounting for most Internet traffic, make no exception. Video
streaming demand increases with remote working, multimedia communication
services (e.g., WhatsApp, Skype), video streaming content (e.g., YouTube,
Netflix), video resolution (4K/8K, 50 fps/60 fps), and multi-view video, making
energy consumption and environmental footprint critical. This survey
contributes to a better understanding of sustainable and efficient video
streaming technologies by providing insights into the state-of-the-art and
potential future directions for researchers, developers, and engineers, service
providers, hosting platforms, and consumers. We widen this survey’s focus on
content provisioning and content consumption based on the observation that
continuously active network equipment underneath video streaming consumes
substantial energy independent of the transmitted data type. We propose a
taxonomy of factors that affect the energy consumption in video streaming, such
as encoding schemes, resource requirements, storage, content retrieval,
decoding, and display. We identify notable weaknesses in video streaming that
require further research for improved energy efficiency: (1) fixed bitrate
ladders in HTTP live streaming; (2) inefficient hardware utilization of
existing video players; (3) lack of comprehensive open energy measurement
dataset covering various device types and coding parameters for reproducible
research.
The content of this article explores the challenges posed by climate change and the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, specifically in the context of digital technologies and video streaming. It highlights the increasing demand for video streaming due to factors such as remote working, multimedia communication services, and high-quality video content. It emphasizes the importance of addressing the energy consumption and environmental impact associated with video streaming.
This article is particularly relevant in the field of multimedia information systems, as it discusses the energy consumption and environmental footprint of video streaming technologies. Multimedia information systems involve the processing, storage, and retrieval of multimedia data, including videos. Considering the energy efficiency and sustainability of these systems is crucial in the context of climate change and environmental concerns.
The concepts discussed in this article also relate to animations, artificial reality, augmented reality, and virtual realities. These technologies often involve the creation and delivery of immersive and interactive multimedia content, including videos. As the demand for these technologies and their associated content increases, so does the need to address their energy consumption and environmental impact. By understanding the factors that affect energy consumption in video streaming, researchers, developers, and engineers can devise more sustainable and efficient solutions for delivering animations, artificial reality, augmented reality, and virtual realities.
The article proposes a taxonomy of factors that affect energy consumption in video streaming, including encoding schemes, resource requirements, storage, content retrieval, decoding, and display. This taxonomy provides a framework for understanding and analyzing the energy efficiency of video streaming technologies. By identifying notable weaknesses in video streaming, such as fixed bitrate ladders in HTTP live streaming and inefficient hardware utilization of existing video players, the article highlights areas for further research and improvement to enhance energy efficiency.
A key challenge highlighted in the article is the lack of a comprehensive open energy measurement dataset covering various device types and coding parameters for reproducible research. This indicates a need for more extensive data collection and analysis to inform future efforts in improving energy efficiency in video streaming. Researchers and service providers can collaborate to create and share such datasets, enabling more accurate assessments of energy consumption and the development of more sustainable video streaming technologies.
Conclusion
Overall, this article provides valuable insights into the current state and potential future directions of sustainable and efficient video streaming technologies. Its focus on energy consumption and environmental impact aligns with the growing recognition of the need to address climate change challenges across all sectors, including technology. The multi-disciplinary nature of the concepts discussed in the article connects to wider fields such as multimedia information systems, animations, artificial reality, augmented reality, and virtual realities. By addressing the weaknesses and identifying areas for improvement in video streaming, researchers, developers, and engineers can contribute to the development of more sustainable and efficient multimedia technologies as a whole.