Scoping study into standby energy use by domestic electronic appliances

Standby electricity use is the energy consumed by appliances when they are switched âoffâ and/or not performing their principal function but still drawing mains power. It is also known by the names âleaking electricityâ and âphantom loadsâ. Standby power levels have become an issue of concern in a number of other countries in recent years as the increasing number of appliances which are consuming electricity in the standby mode, often associated with remote control operation, has essentially created a new category of energy end use. It is estimated that the average household in the USA now constantly âleaksâ more than 50W. Rainer et al [1] found a selection of houses in the USA to be consuming between 53 and 115W with no appliances being used. Although this may sound like a small amount, when it is considered that most of these appliances are connected to the electricity supply continuously it amounts to an energy consumption level of about 450kWh per year. If standby levels are similar in Australia, and there is little reason to think they are not given lifestyles and the international nature of the market for these products, this represents 5-10% of the average householdâs electricity consumption. A recent for Energy Efficiency Victoria estimated loads of between 400 and 1500kWh per year [2]. NSW households are currently spending about $40m annually to keep TVs and VCRs in the standby mode. The majority of appliances with standby consumption at present fall into the categories of video, audio and communications equipment, such as TVs, VCRs, cable TV decoders, compact hi-fi systems and answer phones. Many of these appliances consume far more energy in standby than in actual use. For example, more than 80% of the energy consumption of a VCR is in standby and less than 20% when actually recording or playing back tapes [3]

High definition systems in Japan

The successful implementation of a strategy to produce high-definition systems within the Japanese economy will favorably affect the fundamental competitiveness of Japan relative to the rest of the world. The development of an infrastructure necessary to support high-definition products and systems in that country involves major commitments of engineering resources, plants and equipment, educational programs and funding. The results of these efforts appear to affect virtually every aspect of the Japanese industrial complex. The results of assessments of the current progress of Japan toward the development of high-definition products and systems are presented. The assessments are based on the findings of a panel of U.S. experts made up of individuals from U.S. academia and industry, and derived from a study of the Japanese literature combined with visits to the primary relevant industrial laboratories and development agencies in Japan. Specific coverage includes an evaluation of progress in R&D for high-definition television (HDTV) displays that are evolving in Japan; high-definition standards and equipment development; Japanese intentions for the use of HDTV; economic evaluation of Japan's public policy initiatives in support of high-definition systems; management analysis of Japan's strategy of leverage with respect to high-definition products and systems

Re-Examining the Digital Divide

Much media and public policy attention has been attended to a presumed ?Digital Divide.? This refers to those who have access to information tools and the capability of using information and those who presumably do not. This paper looks at the forces and trends in the information technologies themselves and the economics of information. It concludes that the divide at its outset was much the same as many gaps that have and continue to persist in a capitalistic society. It further concludes that costs are falling so steeply and ease of use improving so rapidly that market forces already seem to me eliminating the greatest portion of the divide. Policy-makers may have less of an issue to deal with in a few years than seemed likely just a few years ago

Questioning the Generational Divide: Technological Exoticism and Adult Constructions of Online Youth Identity

Part of the Volume on Youth, Identity, and Digital Media. This chapter reflects on the effects and implications of the discrepancy between adult perspectives on digital media and youth experiences. Through an analysis of public discourse by marketers, journalists, and new media researchers compared with statements by young technology users, it is proposed that the current so-called "Internet generation" is in fact a transitional generation, in which young Internet users are characterized to varying degrees by a dual consciousness of both their own and adult perspectives, the latter of which tend to exoticize youth. An analogy with the first television generation is developed to suggest that the birth of a true Internet generation, some years in the future, will pave the way for more normalized, difficult-to-question changes in media attitudes and consumption, and thus that the present transitional moment should be taken advantage of to encourage conversation between adults and youth about technology and social change