In a bid to become a little more environmentally friendly, Sky is introducing a new automatic energy-saving initiative for all its Sky+ and Sky HD boxes.
The new feature will automatically switch a customer's Sky box into standby mode if it hasn't been used for a period of two hours between the hours of 11pm and 4am, after displaying an on-screen warning for three minutes.
As the Sky box needs to have power supplied to it at all times in order to allow the schedule of recordings and software updates, it's near impossible to completely cut power usage when the Sky box isn't actively being used. However, Sky calculate that this initiative could save enough energy to light all the homes in Wolverhampton, or power all the washing machines in Liverpool, as well as slashing £7.5m from customers' annual electricity bills, and reducing the UK's CO2 emissions by 32,000 tonnes a year.
I'm not sure why this feature can't be invoked 24 hours a day - after all I can imagine someone watching the morning news on their Sky box, forgetting to turn it to standby, and it remaining actively on all day.
Nevertheless, in the absence of consumers taking proactive measures to cut their electricity usage (how hard is it to turn off a Sky box when you've finished watching it?), it's a step in the right direction.
The feature goes live for Sky HD subscribers today, with Sky+ boxes being rolled out over the next few months.
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Oh please! Sky claim this as a UK first, but the TVDrive/V+HD box has been doing this since launch!
The advantage to the provider is that it not only cuts energy usage (good PR) but it also cuts hard disk wear as the box isn't constantly reading and writing 24 hours a day, meaning fewer box replacements are needed.
My Sky HD box has done this for a long time now. since before xmas I think. maybe as I sometimes update the software?
"Sky introduce energy-saving overnight standby mode for Sky+ and Sky HD boxes"
At the same time, Sky introduce new energy-hungry feature whereby box is active, with fans whirring and hard drive spinning for hours overnight/early morning, despite being in standby.
That seems to be what everyone's box is doing right now anyway... guess they didn't include that bit in the press release.