Sustainable streaming? Data centre 'breakthrough' may lower power use

Large amounts of fossil fuels are burned to power the data centres from which we get our Netflix, Apple TV+ and Disney+ shows. One group of scientists are now hopeful this is only temporary. — Photo: Matthias Balk/dpa

WASHINGTON: Soaring energy costs and pressure on electricity grids have prompted growing scrutiny of the global data centre business and its carbon footprint.

The centres house the world’s billions of social media, email and cloud computing accounts, while also powering streaming platforms like Netflix, and can use up to 50 times as much energy as an office building of the same size, according to the US government's National Science Foundation (NSF).