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Opinion Paper
When Giants Flex Their Muscles
Green Activities of Silicon ValleyICT Industry Leaders
2010 / 10
We make ICT strategies work
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Table of Contents
1 Executive Summary.............................................................................................42 Introduction..........................................................................................................6
2.1 Green ICT Just another Fashion? ............................................................62.2 Purpose of the Survey The Scale of Impact .............................................7
3 Perception How do you see? ...................................................................... 114 Approach How do you address?.................................................................175 Activities What do you do?..........................................................................24
5.1 External Facing Market...........................................................................245.2 Internal Facing In-House ........................................................................ 275.3 Financial ROI & TCO..............................................................................28
6 Conclusion The Green Hype Split .................................................................. 307 The Authors.......................................................................................................328 The Company....................................................................................................33
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Table of Figures
Figure 1: Take home messages of the green survey...............................................................4Figure 2: The 10 survey participants ........................................................................................7Figure 3: Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability groups of the companies ....................................8Figure 4: Building blocks of a carrier and its surrounding telco ecosystem..............................9Figure 5: Addressed topics within the survey...........................................................................9Figure 6: Cost savings dominate over environmental considerations ....................................11Figure 7: Cost savings are the prime driver of green ICT.......................................................12Figure 8: Even spread of hype & tangibility in the market yet as function of target group .....14Figure 9: No end-consumer will accept performance drawbacks for being green .................15Figure 10: Technology is the field where Green ICT will show the largest impact.................17 Figure 11: What are the prime green activity fields within the technology sector ..................19Figure 12: What are the prime green activity fields within the business sector......................21 Figure 13: To start with internal green changes is the preferred approach............................23 Figure 14: Market-facing activities of the interviewed companies..........................................24Figure 15: Responsibilities to push green implementations (along the supply chain)............25
Figure 16: All have expectation for HW manufacturers..........................................................25Figure 17: 90% confirm the purchasing power of large enterprises.......................................25Figure 18: Activities of the interviewed companies facing in-house .......................................27Figure 20: The hype cycle splits into 2 curves with both having different recovery times......30
Color Code:
Take Home Message Citation from company
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1 Executive Summary
Carriers around the world are looking for new opportunities to reduce internal costs, growrevenue through new services and smart solutions, and to create a positive brand image in
the hope that this results in promoting stickiness and lowering churn and at the same time
ensures compliance with regulations, satisfies stakeholders expectations, and avoids
bringing the company into the line of public fire. Green Information & Communication
Technology (ICT) everything around sustainability and energy-efficiency in the
telecommunications space has the potential to address all the above angles; if it is done
right.
At the moment it is (still) challenging to clearly distinguish between hype and reality in this
field. Therefore it is crucial to initiate the right steps and in the right order as the market is still
in its infancy, seeking new (or alternative) business models and best practice approaches.
Waiting is not an option because otherwise conflicts with upcoming regulations are
guaranteed.
The content of this publication is a reflection on the answers given to a survey by selected
ICT companies. It delivers first-hand insights as to what suppliers, vendors, and partners of
carriers have on their green mind. The survey addressed various fields (perception,
approach, activities) of the Green ICT sector and the answers are used to identify green
patterns and trends. Carriers should consider them for the development of their own green
strategies and approaches. When it comes to environmental-friendly actions, imitation is
highly welcome as it serves the greater good.
The sketch (Figure 1) illustrates the key take home messages and attitudes stemming fromthe Valley. They are discussed in detail in this publication.
Subtitle
Walk the
Talk
Cost
Savings
Rules
Technology
is theEnabler
Start with
In-House
Greening
Enable Fast
Market
Penetration
Stick to public
promises. Ideal:
Under-promise/
over-deliver.
Prime
Activity
Fields
NoPremium
Fee for
Green
BeObjective
Imitation is
OK
Carrier
No Island
Activities
Independent and 3rd
party vendor-vendor
assessment is
indispensable toobjectively separate
hype from reality.
Despite
governmentalpressure and
environmental
expectations,
saving costs is
the main driver ofgreen.
Embrace green
knowledge sharing
along the supply
chain and other
carriers.
Innovation, Supply Chain,
Cost Calculations, DCOptimization, Energy-
Efficient Hardware,
Software Energy
Management.
Green is still partlymistrusted. Majority of
consumers are not willing to
pay a premium to be green.
Dont try to create positive
public awareness if it is still
messy behind the curtain. It
is essential to put ones ownhouse in order first.
Savings could be used for green
product discount end consumer
campaigns or to accept initial
premium fees from manufacturers
to support cost-intensive R&D.
Create green synergies by establishing partnerships and alliances.
New green business & services are enabled by technology, not the other way around.
Figure 1: Take home messages of the green survey
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The outcome of this survey will for sure not provide the solution for the theory of everything.
However, size indeed matters in this case and the impact scales directly with it. The
participants have double-digit telco market shares within their fields of core business.1
When
put together those companies essentially have a grip on 40% to 90% of the global telcomarket. They are the main hardware, software, service and solution providers to the majority
of carriers around the world; they are the giants within their fields. Whatever green path
these players choose to walk will be the trail others shall follow. Carriers should therefore
pay close attention.
1 Disclaimer: All logos shown within this document are registered trademarks of the respective companies in the
U.S. and other countries. Logos are the property of their respective owners. The use of logos in this documentdoes not imply a partnership relationship between Detecon International (including its affiliated and subsidiarycompanies) and any other company shown in this document.This publication is derived from sources believed to be accurate and reliable, but neither its accuracy norcompleteness is guaranteed. The material and information in this publication are provided "as is" and withoutwarranties of any kind, either expressed or implied. Any opinions and views in this publication reflect the current judgment of the authors and may change without notice. It is each reader's responsibility to evaluate theaccuracy, completeness and usefulness of any opinions, advice, services or other information provided in thispublication.The information and opinions contained in this publication constitutes neither a solicitation, nor arecommendation, nor an offer to buy or sell investment instruments or other services, or to engage in any otherkind of transaction. The information described in this publication is not directed to persons in any jurisdiction
where the provision of such information would run counter to local laws and regulation. Detecon International andits related, affiliated and subsidiary companies disclaim all warranties, expressed or implied, including, but notlimited to, implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.
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2 Introduction
A core attribute of something being en vogue is that it tends to come and go. When attimes trendy products, services and attitudes get into the minds and imaginations of
consumers, they get onto the rollercoaster and run through the product life cycle until they
reach their natural end. For the last 2 years green appeared to be on a similar ride.
Is being green just a fashion? Another wave that will roll up to the beach, break a few
small sand-castles and then recede quietly? Or will it last longer and show tangible
sustainability? Trends often fall in the former category a wave that is quickly rising and
then falling again.
2.1 Green ICT Just another Fashion?
2009 was when Green entered the collective imagination of consumers and governments.
It was a record year for green investments2. Every day brought new announcements, new
promises and new ideas. Discussions on greenhouse emissions and green technologies
were collectively spurred by nervous investors looking for the next stock market darling to
arrive, governments interested in new opportunities for job creation and consumers
interested in reducing their environmental footprint. In the year 2009 everyone was suddenly
involved and interested in both sides green bucks and green trees.
This compelling mixture of demands and expectations triggered the urgency on part of
businesses to act. For one, it became clear that reducing expenses was crucial and couldpotentially be the difference between bankruptcy and survival. In addition it started to
become clear that the public had generally accepted the idea of man-made global warming
and that companies would need to be viewed as green in order to be considered socially
acceptable (much like changes in public perception of pollution control, labor policies and
equal opportunities for women in the decades past). As a logical consequence, the public
and the government began drawing their attention to big industry players by judging and
observing their initiatives to drive a better (greener) future. Expectations and pressure from
and on the industry were put on a fast-track and (unfortunately) green was pulled into the
marketing machinery. The term green got exploited, deformed and abused to the very
limits. Suddenly everyone and everything was green, just in different shades.
Over the course of 2010 it has become rather quiet around the green bubble. Or so it seems.In reality, activities have actually moved on to a different (higher) level. A lot simply has been
pushed out of the public radar and is taking place in-house. It is the result of lessons that
many companies had to learn in a rather painful way. Fingers were burned by having pushed
green marketing campaigns a bit too far. Due to misconception, over-hype, big promises
and small results, the term green is still viewed with suspicion by many consumers and
regulatory agencies. Companies have now realized that it is better to under-promise, then
over-deliver and do so without too much publicity.
2Green Transition Scoreboard: Findings on Investments since 2007, July 2010
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The above history is what makes Green
different. It is touching the very fundamentals of
consumer attitudes and wallets. Albeit being en
vogue at the moment, green is not just anotherwave. It is a necessity, not a luxury. It is neither
a product nor a service (although it will contain
both). Green is here to stay.
2.2 Purpose of the Survey The Scale of Impact
The purpose of this publication is to separate the reality from the hype in terms of green
activities. It aims to understand how leading players from Silicon Valley are dealing with and
working on energy efficiency and sustainability.
The survey is custom-tailored for the telecommunications industry and in particular for
carriers. The questions asked are addressing various fields of the Green ICT sector. The
survey identifies patterns and trends amongst the participants. These are useful for carriers
to consider for the development of their own green endeavors and optimizations as well as
for Corporate Social Responsibility strategy.
The survey has been conducted with only a few companies (in total 10, see Figure 2). Yet
these participants all have global market shares in the double-digit range within their fields of
core business. When put together they control 40% to 90% of the market. They are the
main hardware, software, service and solution providers to the majority of carriers around the
world. These companies are the giants within their fields. Size indeed matters and the impactscales directly with it.
Figure 2: The 10 survey participants
With its ability to drive down costs
in favor of the environmentGreen is for carriers a necessity,
not a luxury.
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Every individual can no doubt contribute to a sustainable future. However, if action points for
solutions and changes have to be put onto a fast track, then the scale of impact matters. As
mentioned before, this naturally draws the attention to the large industry players rather than
end-consumers. A single move of a large enterprise may be of equal impact as to havingnumerous end-consumers decide, act and move simultaneously. Consider the following
hypothetical scenario: A software update designed to increase the efficiency of power
consumption, is remotely pushed onto end-consumer laptops and PCs. About 1.5 billion
PCs are worldwide in use3. Assuming that just 30% of these are configured to accept
automatic updates, the effect of such an automated remote push would be the equivalent of
a scenario where 500 million end-consumers proactively search the Internet for energy-
saving tools, install and then start using such a tool all in the same night. Which scenario is
more likely?
As for the interviews themselves, they were all conducted with VPs, Directors and Principles
of these companies. Their titles might differ as might the names of their groups (Figure 3).
Regardless, all of the interviewees were directly involved with energy efficiency &sustainability related topics within their respective companies. For a topic such as Green ICT
which is still in its burgeoning state and suffers from a lack of best practices & maturity,
talking to specialized group/division heads is important in order to gather both vision and
detail.
GreenBusiness
Operations
& Strategy
Climate
&Energy
Strategy
Environmental
SustainabilityGroup
Eco-
EnvironmentalEngineering
Energy&
Environment
Group
Energy
EfficiencyGroup
EnergyEfficient
Solutions
Power
Strategies &
SustainableTechnologies
CorporateSustainability
Group
Green
Business &TechnologyDevelopment
Figure 3: Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability groups of the companies
Participants were chosen to avoid developing a tunnel view, e.g. only focusing on the top
10 network component manufacturers (or any other sector). From a carriers perspective this
would only be a slice of the ecosystem surrounding it. A carrier can be seen as multi-layered
structure. Each of these layers serves a specific purpose and is being provided or supported
by specific industry sectors.4 The goal of the survey is to cover as many relevant layers as
possible and to gain insights along their own supply chain (Figure 4).
3 George Shiffler, Gartner Research: PC Installed Base, Worldwide, April 2008
4 We neglect for a moment that there is a trend in the telco industry to either expand vertically or to acquire
companies to enter new business fields (inorganic growth). The figure above should be seen as traditional. Inreality, the individual pieces of the puzzle would not have sharp boundaries and rather show a strong overlap.However, results of the survey remain unimpaired.
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Services
Software
Hardware
Access
Aggregation
Core Customers
Carrier Building Blocks
Enterprise Solution
Providers
Network Hardware
ManufacturersInternet Service
Providers
End-User Device
Manufacturers
Telco Ecosystem
Figure 4: Building blocks of a carrier and its surrounding telco ecosystem
Within this report the interviewees responses have been sorted to fit areas of Green ICT
which are relevant to (Figure 5):
Perception & Definition
Approaches
Impacts on business & technology
Internal activities (in-house)
External activities (market-facing)
Financial impacts
Technology &Business impacts
of Green ICT?
Approach to Green ICT?
Internal & External Greenactivities?
Financial impactsof Green ICT?
Perception of Green ICT?
Survey Technology &Business impacts
of Green ICT?
Approach to Green ICT?
Internal & External Greenactivities?
Financial impactsof Green ICT?
Perception of Green ICT?
Survey
Figure 5: Addressed topics within the survey
The survey is custom-tailored for the
telecommunications industry, inparticular for carriers.
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Of particular interest are the approaches. As discussed in detail in a previous publication5,
carriers are facing pressure from several directions. They must hit the sweet spot in order
to serve the green expectations of different players such as regulatory agencies,
customers, shareholders, and competitors. At the same time the green endeavor should notruin the company. It is about finding the right balance, especially when it comes to the
timelines of in-house versus external activities.
The reader should note that activities and initiatives around Green are still in transition.
They are shifting from an optimization-driven approach of IT systems & hardware such as
datacenters, facilities, computers, and network systems (aka Green ICT 1.0) to beyond the
walls of the company. The so-called Green ICT 2.0 is aiming for a birds-eye view
perspective, going for the holistic picture with all its collateral impacts. Prime attention is
therefore being drawn to, for instance, carbon management, embodied energy, green cities,
smart homes, and green supply chain management.
5
Dr. E. Dulkeith; R. Mukherjee (Detecon): OpEx and CO2 Killing Two Birds with One Green Stone. StrategicConsiderations for incorporating Sustainability & Energy Efficiency in Access Networks, April 2010
The participants of the green survey are the giants within the telecommunications
industry. Their responses and the deducted patterns & trends are to be considered by
carriers for the development of their own green endeavors and optimizations.
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3 Perception How do you see?
How an enterprise or individual perceives green has a large impact on their expectations,behavior, priorities, roadmaps, initiatives, etc. In the framework of this survey the term
perception is used as an umbrella term covering awareness, perspective, definition,
attitude, opinion, and conception. It determines how reality is seen and approached.
When asked about their definition of Green ICT, most players answered that neither purely
economical nor ecological definitions apply and that it was a blend of both.
100% of the companies see Green
defined as a blend of both green
bucks and green trees (Figure 6).
The majority agrees (70%) that
although the environment is, without a
doubt, very important, the financial
health survival of the company is of
higher relevance and greater priority.
10
00
Economical Ecological Both
30%
70%
Economical more important
Ecological more important
Figure 6: Cost savings dominate over environmental considerations
In fact it is almost impossible to clearly
separate economical & ecological
benefits. They are just too interde-
pendent.
Nowadays,short-term ROI are prime directive as capital has become very
important and budget spending has been shortened. The global economic situation
has shifted priorities from environment comes first to reducing costs comes first. ROI
has reached new levels of importance. Just recently, green was mainly correlated to
power savings via AC, UPS and regulator improvements. The timeline was less urgent.
Main focus is on economical aspects as
they are easier to scope (OPEX). From
certain angles there is no clear borderline. How
to measure costs of environmental damage?
How to accurately measure costs of sick
employees as a result of environmental
pollution?
From a business perspective economicalaspects will always be of greater relevance.
They directly impact state & health of a
company
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Moreover, the economic/ecological cost-benefit ratio
strongly varies with what one looks at. There is no
general rule applicable to all. For instance, the amount of
efforts and investments as well as the ROI forrestructuring a datacenter or to introduce paper cups are
not at all comparable. It is a case-by-case assessment
and decision. The ideal situation is always to kill two
birds with one green stone.
When asked about the relative importance of different drivers for Green ICT most players
answered that cost savings dominate. 8 out of 10 companies stated that reducing costs is
the most important driver for green (Driver 1 in Figure 7)6. This is in agreement with the
previous question. However, adding potential governmental regulations as an additional
consideration permits more insight into the drivers for the individual companies in light of
their core businesses.
Those companies within the driver 1 pillar
which have not ranked cost as the prime
driver are either pursuing to become
leaders in the new green niche market
(Environment is prime driver) or
potentially exhibit stronger cultural &
geographical European heritages which
could be the reason for a per se stronger
emphasis on environmental aspects.
Europe is known to have always drawn
its focus more on sustainability than costsavings
7.
The second most important drivers (2)are equally environmental friendlinessand legal compliance as both received50% of votes each
8. Given the back-
ground of the companies interviewed(Figure 4) this distribution is reasonable.Those with core business aroundhardware manufacturing are mostlyconcerned by upcoming regulations and,accordingly, have primarily placed legalcompliance as the second mostimportant driver (2).
Figure 7: Cost savings are the prime driver of green ICT
6As will be seen later this implies that green in-house initiatives for cost-saving should come first (= reducingOpex) because any tapping into the external product line in general requires first, significant R&D investments(= increased expenses) and, second, is time consuming.
7 REN21 Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century: Global Trends in Green Energy in 2009 and
Global Status Report 2010, July 2010
8Each interviewee (10 in total) was allowed to provide one complete set of ranks (First, Second, Third). Hence, the
total yields 300% as shown in Figure Figure 7).
Green (ICT)
=Green (Trees + Bucks)
Cost Savings
Environmentally Friendly
Legal Compliance
Driver 1 Driver 2 Driver 3
80%
50%
20%
40%
50%
40%
10%
10%
0%
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The concern (and consequently the ranking) is justified as hardware is a measurable box
with detailed technical specifications. A piece of hardware can easily be put to a pass/fail
test, its carbon emissions can be easily determined and calculated and it can be subjected
to enforced boundary conditions for energy-efficiency
9
.
On the other hand there are significant
challenges in determining the
environmental impact of software or webservices. Similar to the hardware
manufacturers and in accordance with
their core business, all soft companies
have chosen environmental friendliness
to be at second position.
The third most important driver (3) is
again equally split between environ-
mental friendliness and compliance with
40% of votes each. The reader shall
note that a clear difference between
driver 2 and driver 3 cannot be
concluded. Given the small sample
number of interviewees (10, yet with
substantial power of impact, see
Chapter 2.2) the results of 40% and
50% are too similar.
9One example is the ISO 50001 (International Standards Organization) which is planned to be published in about
a year from now (ISO 50001 on Energy Management Systems: Approved as Draft International Standard,http://www.ansi.org/news_publications, June 2010). The US Department of Energy has been one of the primary
motivators. In light of the current popularity (and true need) for energy efficiency the development of 50001 wasshortened to 3 years (instead of regular 5 years). 50001 will become the new standard for energy management. Itwill be issued to complement ISO 9001 (quality management) and ISO 14001 (environmental management).
From a vendor perspective our goal is tomaintain leadership in green technologies.
It is less a question of complying with upcoming regulations but ratherparticipatingin
creating the right set of smart regulations. We actively shape & participate in defining
US & International governmental regulations.
Prime directive isto comply with
governmental regulations, international
standards, and in best case scenario to
exceed them significantly.
Environmental considerations are position 3
as they arevery hard to quantify.
Cost savings is the carrot, compliance
with regulations is most often rather the
stick. Low-hanging fruits such as
approaches that enjoy greater chances of
approval within a company are always driven
by short ROI and good cost-savings
While some countries are leading & driving environmental friendly considerations forICT (e.g. Australia, UK, US, Germany) in far more countries new regulations are
emerging. From this point of view, being compliant with emerging regulations has
higher priority than being green.
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It can be concluded however that cost savings is clearly perceived as the major driver while
compliance with regulations and acting in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner
both share the second place.
When asked as to how they perceive the market in terms of hype versus tangible benefits of
Green ICT the replies were rather evenly distributed between equal, more hype, and
more tangible with 40%, 30%, and 30% of the votes respectively (Figure 8).
This spread should not hide the fact that all participants agree that a green hype factor exists
in ICT and this factor is significantly greater than in other industry sectors. As the last two
years have shown, the market has been green-washed and numerous companies have tried
to exaggerate their position when trying to paint themselves in various shades of green.
However, the trend is slowly shifting from equal towards more tangible.
Also, during the conversations with the
interviewees it was mentioned that hype triggers
confusion. The current situation where no
standards, benchmarks, and references are
readily available to establish the basis for an
objective assessment and comparison makes it
challenging to demonstrate green tangibility.
Figure 8: Even spread of hype & tangibility in
the market yet as function of target group
This confusion sometimes causes sales and
marketing to make (almost) arbitrary green
statements, smearing out the different shades of
green, because they did not know any better
(and partly getting away with it).
When setting green priorities carriers should assess the scope & nature of their assets.
Even though cost savings are prime directive the degree of regulatory impact can vary
significantly. VNOs and ISPs with only moderate hardware assets can be less
concerned about legal compliance whereas local incumbents should be alerted.
Vendors often offer hype;
technology companiesare in
general more tangible and"down-
to-earth"because their claims for
energy-efficiency aremeasurable.
Clearly, the market is confused. There is
lots of green washing and also not all green
comparisons are actually fair. What is
missing is a3rd party objective
evaluation.
30%Equal
40%
More tangible
30%
More hype
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Another point worth emphasizing is that several companies responded to the hype question
by breaking it into different target groups. In consensus, more hype is seen in conjunction
with end-consumers while the business space is associated with more tangible benefits.
When asked about their opinion on how the customer/end-consumer perceives Green and
whether a positive perception by the end consumer may show positive impacts on revenue,
most players replied in the negative.
Most interviewees felt that consumers are not willing to accept reduced performance (saving
energy) in order to contribute to an environmental friendly behavior (0%, Figure 9). 90% of
all companies agree upon that the consumer looks at the carrier and expects green new
products without any sacrifices in performance at all. As will be discussed later, the end-
consumers are seen as the second strongest group to push green changes (Figure 15).
Sensitized & expects green ecologicaladvances
Willing to accept performancedrawbacks for being green
Sensitized & expects green ecologicaladvances
Not willing to accept performancedrawbacks for being green
Frustrated & confused by exaggerated
green-washing attempts throughout allmarket segments
Ignoring green aspects aspurchase criteria as he/she cannotdistinguish between hype and reality
Sensitized & expects green ecologicaladvances
Willing to accept performancedrawbacks for being green
Sensitized & expects green ecologicaladvances
Not willing to accept performancedrawbacks for being green
Frustrated & confused by exaggerated
green-washing attempts throughout allmarket segments
Ignoring green aspects aspurchase criteria as he/she cannotdistinguish between hype and reality
2
9
0
Figure 9: No end-consumer will accept performance drawbacks for being green
The green market still suffers from a lack of
tangibility. Facts and hard numbers are the only
way to objectively distinguish between hype and
reality. Although slowly emerging, there are no
global standards, benchmarks and references yet
to create an objective assessment andcomparison. This is still up to the company.
Lots of clients for services and
business solutions are clearly
aware of the necessity of
efficiency benefits yet it is not
clear and still challenging to
determine how large the greenbenefits are. This is the biggest
challenge: How to measure it?
From a technological perspective one should always perform adirect side-by-side
vendor comparison of products. This helps to better identify real tangible benefits.
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20% see the situation as being even
worse. Consumers have identified false
sales messages and have become
skeptical. Yet they cannot distinguishbetween hype and reality, and hence,
will not implement green aspects into
their purchase criteria at all10
.
In general, green is not seen as a feature where consumers are willing to pay a significant
premium fee. The private end-consumer does not and cannot think in ROI terms, and hence
exhibit only limited willingness to pay a premium for the moment (if at all and even then only
a minor one). This is very different for companies. Considerations of special agreements
along the supply chain could be taken into consideration and could potentially be used tocompensate & balance each other e.g. costs for R&D in product advances from the
manufacturers side against OPEX reductions in the carrier network. This should be
communicated to manufacturers and carriers.
10The reason for having a total of 110% in Figure 9 is the result of one company differentiating its answers bygeographical region stating that customers in Asia are leading edge with communication technology, hence, havehigh standards and do not accept any performance drawback at all (answer not willing).
On the other hand, other regions may never have really cared (answer ignorant) simply because the majority ofenergy has always been green, for instance from wind, water, solar, and geothermal sources. From anenvironmental perspective any high power consumption has never really been an issue.
An example ofsaturatedcustomers has
been the Apple commercials about green
laptops. Sales went down. Apple returnedto the original campaign communicating
high-end products to an exclusive group
Silicon Valley players feel that end-consumers will not accept any premium-fee or
performance drop for the sake of being green. Carriers have to bear this in mind.
100% of companies agree that end-consumer have the final word. They decide if a
green product & service will shine or flop.
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4 Approach How do you address?
The perception of a company on market and target groups is essential. But equallyimportant is the approach adopted to address the situation. This chapter deals with
questions around the green approaches of the Silicon Valley players.
When asked about which business segment will Green ICT have a larger impact on more
than twice as many companies (70% versus 30%) responded that it will be the technology
that drives Green ICT.
It means that the majority of interviewees see
new technologies as being the enabler for
new services and only then impacting
business. As an example, while a business
concept & case for teleportation might be
available, without technology to realize this
idea, it will never have any impact. It should
be noted that the answers shown in Figure
Figure 10 show no correlation to the core
business of the companies. The responses
from soft and hard companies are equally
distributed throughout the 100%.
Figure 10: Technology is the field where
Green ICT will show the largest impact
Technology
Business
70%
30%
New business
approaches/
solutions must be
enabled by
technologyfirst;
hence, the impact
commences in
technology
Technology enables new
business and services. The
larger impact, at least for the
years to come, will be in the
technology sector.
Technologyis the
enabling/driving
innovation force for
new services and
with this carries a
large impacton
Green ICT
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When asked to name specific sectors within the technology segment where green activities
are expected to make an impact again three answers dominated the responses11
:
Energy Management on Software Level with 7 out of 10. Energy efficienthardware is only effective as long as it is being intelligently managed. This is
not essential for a single box, but for a nationwide (or global) carrier network
intelligent management via smart software that orchestrates all components in
a harmonic way is a key vision for any telecommunications operator. This is not
only true for carriers but also true for any company with large numbers of
employees (which implies at least an extensive internal network and many
desktops and laptops).
Data Center Optimization with 6 out of 10. As DCs are not exclusive to
carriers the optimization is seen as a key activity field. It should be noted
though that here there is a fundamental difference to carriers. While the
majority of participants certainly have their own data centers to manage,operate, and maintain, none of them owns a nationwide telecommunications
network. As explained in a recent Detecon publication12
, it is the network itself
(combined hardware and software in the access, aggregation, and core) that is
the main contributor to a carriers energy bill.
Energy-Efficient Hardware with 5 out of 10. Advancements in hardware are
the fundamental ingredients for any sustainability & energy-efficiency
approach. Having the same hardware offering the same performance and
yet consuming only a fraction of the power the previous model consumed is the
perennial goal. Without improved power consumption at the hardware level,
intelligent software can barely make a difference without impairing the
performance. One clear path the industry is walking and intensively pushing isthe development of silicon photonics
13and next-generation multi-core
processors14
.
11R&D was not added as an option. Any advancement in technology commences with R&D, hence, it is taken forgranted to be an essential part of most technology activities. For instance, without R&D neither advancedtechnology can be designed nor software developed. However, several companies still commented RD andmentioned that R&D is a key ingredient and activity field within technology.
12Dr. E. Dulkeith; R. Mukherjee (Detecon): OpEx and CO2 Killing Two Birds with One Green Stone. StrategicConsiderations for incorporating Sustainability & Energy Efficiency in Access Networks, April 2010
13Dr. E. Dulkeith; Dr. K. Grunert; S. van-der Merwe (Detecon): Photonic Packet Switching and the Evolution ofOptical Networks, November 2008
14Dr. E. Dulkeith; Dr. Dominik Schmidt (Detecon/Intel): Convergence on a Chip: Potential Opportunities for TelcoIndustry, August 2007
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50%
20%
10%
Data Center
Optimization
Energy Efficient
Hardware
60%
Sustainability
Certificates
Recyclable
Materials
30%
20%
Network
Storage
Systems
Energy
Management on
Software Level
70%
Carrier Networks
Energy Audit
20%
Operational
Strategies
Substitution Products
& Services
10%
Alternative Energy
Sources
10%
In general, the aim isto stay at the leading
edge ofenvironmental friendlycompliance standards
& sustainabilitycertificates. One has
to gobeyond theEnergy-Star.
Figure 11: What are the prime green activity fields within the technology sector
Figure 11 shows that more than 60% of all responses (on average) regarding key activity
fields in technology are assigned to the above three categories15
. At the low end of the
ranking, alternative energy, carrier network energy audits and substitution products can be
found (all 10%). A few further notes/comments are given for clarification:
Alternative Energy: 10% of all
companies actively checked
alternative energy. However, 30%
are commenting in addition on this
topic. It is common sense that such
approaches will have major impact,
yet are still in an early stage.
Furthermore, they require large
investments and are therefore not
seen as key activity fields of today.
Also, most likely this is more seen
as the responsibility of energy
providers to come up with solutions.
15
Similar to previous questions, each participant was allowed to give 3 answers. This yields a total of 3x10responses which was set equal to 300% as a total. This means that the sum of, for instance, DC (60%),Hardware (50%) and Software (70%) equals 180%/300% = 60% of all answers.
Another emerging activity isdynamic
pricing of energy; the purchase is
similar to the stock market. The better you
know your systems and can predict power
peaks, the easier it will become to go for
cheap power shopping.
In the long run the implementation of
alternative energy sourceswill have a
strong impact yet they are currently in a
too early stageto be a key activity fieldof today.
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Network Energy Audits: Auditing the network of
carriers, conducting gap analysis and providing vendor
efficiency-matrix is ranked low (10%). Similar to thedata centers argument, none of the participants are
carriers; hence none own extended network
infrastructures. The participants are positioned along
the supply chain of carriers. Independent studies
together with dedicated conference sessions stressed
that a large number of carriers may know on a high
level where the energy is consumed in their network,
yet lack any details and in particular approaches how
to address such hot spots16,17
. From a carriers
perspective there is a genuine need to resolve this
issue. Vendors and manufacturers can act as usefulsources of information when it comes to the
hardware/software assessment.
Holistic & Unified: 50% of
all comments by companies
refer to terms such asholistic, unified, big
picture, beyond empha-
sizing that a patchwork-like
approach will have a rather
limited positive green impact.
16Warren Wilson, Sustainability Management: An Opportunity for CIOs, Jan 2010
17 Green Telecom East Conference: Transitioning to Environmentally Responsible Networks, New York City, June2009
Next-Gen Energy
Efficiency: It is a
holistic & systematic
approach to optimize
cross-layer device-
communication in
networks. It spans over
access, transport &
core; addressing
hardware, software, and
subsystem levels.
The emerging generation ofoptical communicationstechnology based on
silicon photonicswill have major impact on telecommunications.
The supply chain of a carrier focuses on optimization of software & hardware.To create synergy and achieve the most in the shortest time possible, carriers
should aim for a strong overlap between their own green activities with those of
vendors and manufactures of network components and end-consumer devices.
In order to match product life cycle with green savings, detailed roadmaps (down to
the module/chip level) and knowledge needs to be exchanged.
Outsourcing Services,
Energy Management
and in particular
consolidated &
unifiedcommunication
including control ofIT
&facilitieswill
become very
important.
Instrumentation is
needed for
common
measurement &
control of
network
technology and
beyond; covering
even facility
equipment.
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When asked to name specific sectors within the business segment where green activities
are expected to make an impact three answers dominated the responses (Figure 12):
R&D/Innovation with 8 out of 10. There is a common agreement that
increased efficiency starts at the very source i.e. Research & Development. It
is not a simple switch to be flipped; it has to be developed from scratch and
usually comes with high investments. The majority of carriers do not participate
in this field. It is primarily in the hands of manufacturers.
Costs/ROI with 8 out of 10. How does one get their investment back? This is
a valid question for everyone, not only vendors and manufacturers but also for
carriers. However, it is in particular relevant and challenging for manufacturers
as they usually carry the up-front R&D costs. As discussed before with the
perception of end-consumers (not seeing green as a feature willing to pay a
premium for), a similar attitude is surrounding carriers. A later question willaddress the expectations along the supply chain.
Procurement Design & Purchase Criteria with 6 out of 10. This activity is
commonly seen as how to shop green - regardless of whether it is for discrete
components (like processors), end-consumer products & services, software, or
network elements, etcProcurement Design and defining purchase criteria
addressing sustainability is the first step in "greening the supply chain".
Note that above answers (60% - 80%) have been chosen up to 2 - 8 times more often than
any alternative (10% - 30%), showing a clear preference of the Silicon Valley players18.
80%
60%
80%
20%
10%
R&D / Innovation
Procurement Design,
Purchase CriteriaROI and CostCalculations
Organizational
Restructuring
BestPractice
Development30%
PR
20%
Product SalesApproaches
Assessembodied energy;the strictcontrol of generated carbon emission
on a component level of products alongtheentire supply chainincluding
manufacturing line.
Innovationon the businesslevel is crucial
Partner with suppliersforalternative energy
Figure 12: What are the prime green activity fields within the business sector
18Each participant was allowed to give 3 answers. This yields a total of 3x10 responses which was set equal to300% as a total.
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Looking at the very end of the rankings, the fields of activities which are not seen as being
key are PR and product sales approaches. 80 - 90 % of all participants did not vote for them.
As explained in the introduction of this document, the Silicon Valley community has become
cautious and rather prefers to walk the talk, then announce achievement instead ofcommunicating future yet to be realized plans and goals.
When asked about organizational approaches such as milestones and timelines
implemented by their organizations 100% of all interviewees responded that:
Their company has already started sustainability approaches for variousreasons (driven by competition, environmental responsibility, market shift to
mobile, recycling regulations, customer push driven, etc.) before the green
hype started for at least 5 years.
Their company has established a core team (Figure 3) with 10 to 20 members
supported by 100s to 1000s of volunteers within the company (scales with the
overall size of the company).
Their company is trying to distinguish between short and long term goals. 90%
have milestones and timelines established and these are a part of their CSR
reports (Corporate Social Responsibility).
Optimize supply chain and define green purchase criteria (code of conduct).
Analyze and balance cost factors for going green.
Removing plastic cups and reducing
print-outs is without doubt honorable,
helpful, expected and positive from a
marketing and branding perspective, but
the real green impact is still limited.
Our overallin-houseenergy
consumptionrelates to only1%compared to the99%energy
consumption triggeredby our products
at clients sites.
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Lastly when asked about whether any particular approach might be the most promising to
address Green ICT most interviewees responded that internal changes offered the brightest
immediate prospects.
Eight of ten companies (80%) agreed that one has to
draw their attention first to internal changes (Figure 13).
The other 20% stated that one should work in parallel,
internally (in-house) and externally (facing the market).
Figure 13: To start with internal green
changes is the preferred approach
This confirms what has
been mentioned in the
Introduction and also the
end-consumer perception
as shown in Figure Figure
9. Inde-pendent of B2B or
B2C, customers still have a
bitter after-taste of the
previous 2 years. Too many
companies exaggerated
their green efforts in order
to win over environmentally-
concerned target groups.
80%
20%
Mostly Internal Changes
Both Internal & External Changes
The market has
beengreen-
washeda lot. It
is advisable to
start within-houseCO2
footprint
reductionsfirst.
First do it and then talk
about it. Not the other way
round.
Approaches for the external
market have tofollowinternal
changes.
Walk the talk before commencing market-oriented
campaigns & announcements. Dont try to create positive
public awareness if it is still messy behind the curtain.
Prime attention should be around in-house initiatives.
Both apply in terms of education but not regarding
marketing initiatives. One should only commence
marketing campaigns once you are clean & compliant"
from an in-house perspective.
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5 Activities What do you do?
This chapter covers all questions related to the specific activities. This is the logicalprogression after having assessed the definition of sustainability & energy-efficiency (given
ones own core business) and accordingly determined the approach.
5.1 External Facing Market
External activities are initiatives that are meant to address the market - either from a
customer-facing perspective or in the opposite direction along the supply chain. Figure 14
gives an overview of activities of all participants.
Behavioral Changes
Hardware Changes
Software Changes
Knowledge Sharing
Market externalactivities, products &
services
Multi-thread server
systems
ManufacturingOptimization
Supply Chain Greening
Smart Processors
DC Consolidation
TelePresence
Multi-Mode
Operation Routers
POP Virtualization
ApplicationDevelopmentTools
Telephony SoftClients
CarbonFootprintCalculations
Eco Incentives
ProductEfficiency Assurance
Green P&SRankingPaperless Billing
Audit andCompliance
Dynamic EnergyPricing
CommunityInvolvement
CSR Reports
Web Energy
Calculator
Internet Portal CustomerEducation
Carbon Consulting & Intelligence
Public TransportationSuggestions
Community
Opportunities
Impacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Impacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Impacts?
Efforts?Roadblocks?
Liquid
Cooling
Virtualization Services &Utilization Enhancement
Corporate Vehicles
Facility Control
Network
EnergyManagement
Biodegradablepackaging
Home
Automation
SiliconNanophotonics
GreenEthernet
Device
Energy Management
Alternativeenergy
Partnerships & Alliances
Code of ConductImpacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Innovative product
designs
Behavioral Changes
Hardware Changes
Software Changes
Knowledge Sharing
Market externalactivities, products &
services
Multi-thread server
systems
ManufacturingOptimization
Supply Chain Greening
Smart Processors
DC Consolidation
TelePresence
Multi-Mode
Operation Routers
POP Virtualization
ApplicationDevelopmentTools
Telephony SoftClients
CarbonFootprintCalculations
Eco Incentives
ProductEfficiency Assurance
Green P&SRankingPaperless Billing
Audit andCompliance
Dynamic EnergyPricing
CommunityInvolvement
CSR Reports
Web Energy
Calculator
Internet Portal CustomerEducation
Carbon Consulting & Intelligence
Public TransportationSuggestions
Community
Opportunities
Impacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Impacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Impacts?
Efforts?Roadblocks?
Liquid
Cooling
Virtualization Services &Utilization Enhancement
Corporate Vehicles
Facility Control
Network
EnergyManagement
Biodegradablepackaging
Home
Automation
SiliconNanophotonics
GreenEthernet
Device
Energy Management
Alternativeenergy
Partnerships & Alliances
Code of ConductImpacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Innovative product
designs
Market externalactivities, products &
services
Market externalactivities, products &
services
Multi-thread server
systems
ManufacturingOptimization
Supply Chain Greening
Smart Processors
DC Consolidation
TelePresence
Multi-Mode
Operation Routers
POP Virtualization
ApplicationDevelopmentTools
Telephony SoftClients
CarbonFootprintCalculations
Eco Incentives
ProductEfficiency Assurance
Green P&SRankingPaperless Billing
Audit andCompliance
Dynamic EnergyPricing
CommunityInvolvement
CSR Reports
Web Energy
Calculator
Internet Portal CustomerEducation
Carbon Consulting & Intelligence
Public TransportationSuggestions
Community
Opportunities
Impacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Impacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Impacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Impacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Impacts?
Efforts?Roadblocks?
Impacts?
Efforts?Roadblocks?
Liquid
Cooling
Virtualization Services &Utilization Enhancement
Corporate Vehicles
Facility Control
Network
EnergyManagement
Biodegradablepackaging
Home
Automation
SiliconNanophotonics
GreenEthernet
Device
Energy Management
Alternativeenergy
Partnerships & Alliances
Code of ConductImpacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Impacts?Efforts?
Roadblocks?
Innovative product
designs
Figure 14: Market-facing activities of the interviewed companies
The activities are grouped into 4 categories - changes in behavior (e.g. CSR, awareness
creation, code of conducts, community, etc), in software (e.g. shift of services from
hardware to software, energy management tools, etc), in hardware (new technologies,
expanding business, upgrades, replacements, comparison sheets, etc...), and sharing of
knowledge (insights, how-to, customer education, support of clients beyond the own good,
etc..). It should be noted that none of the above can be directly compared to each other in
terms of impact, efforts, or potential roadblocks and hurdles. As we will see later in the
financial section, each activity has to be assessed individually.
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When asked as to whose main responsibility in the market should it be to push and/or force
Green ICT implementation the answers received were mixed.
There are two primary activities in the green space, to actively push/request green changesor actively realize those changes. Figure 15 gives an overview. The responses are sorted by
their role within the supply chain. Also, the results are normalized to Carrier/ISP to facilitate
comparison.
3.02.5
1.01.02.0
GovernmentEnd UserCarrier/ISPTelco VendorManufacturer
Governments & End Users
Pressuring Carriers to Act
SUPPLY CHAIN
Manufacturers & Vendors Face
Pressure from Large Carriers
Carriers FulfillImportant Enabling
Role
Impose
1.5 (All)
Figure 15: Responsibilities to push green implementations (along the supply chain)
Top ranked with the highest responsibility is the
government with its power to enact nationwide
regulations and standards. Equally important is the
ability to impose penalties & fines in case of disregard.
The government as the prime entity for green
responsibility was chosen 3 times more often than
carriers.
Second highest ranking was for end users with a factor
of 2.5 beyond the carrier. Given they are located at the
very end of the supply chain19 the end users are seen asthe group with largest responsibility & ability to "push"
and create action in the market. Referring to Chapter 3
(Perception), the end users have the final word. It is
simply a case of supply & demand. In case a product is
not appealing enough pricewise or from an
environmental perspective he/she is not going to
purchase it.
19The government occupies a rather umbrella-like big brother function across the supply chain.
2/3 of RfP haveenergy
relatedrequests (REQ)and questions (RFI) and
quickly growing in scope.
Governments are
pushing this
development.
End users canpush, the
Government canforce
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A few activities are overlapping with the market-oriented activities as they can be applied to
both fields and are simultaneously beneficial to employees as well as customers. Prominent
examples with a 100% spread throughout all interviewed companies are for instance:
Virtualization
Energy Management Software
TelePresence
Awareness Creation
Waste & Illumination Management
5.3 Financial ROI & TCO
Occupying a hybrid position between market-facing activities and
internal decision making, green financials are described in this
separate chapter. At a glance, there is no common denominator,
no guideline and no best practice. Answers from participants
were diverse, with the argument that financial evaluations arevery much a case-by-case decision instead of applying one strict
threshold and formula.
When asked if they were willing to accept an
increased CapEx (i.e. spending a premium on
hardware, software, or services) answers were
equally split (20% voting) between Yes,
between 10-30% and No. The majority (60%)
gave alternative answers, ranging from focusing
preferably on TCO to 5% (hardware) and 10%(services), to skipping the questions (citing
confidentiality).
Demand Response Energy Curtailment:
Electricity providers call out for power
reduction during peak demand. As an
incentive, discount on electricity are offered.
Flexible workspace philosophy(Open Work): Employees can work from home. This
increases satisfaction, balances families, increases productivity, and saves expenses forfacilities. Teleworkingandshared officesapproaches are popular. About 40% of all
employees do not have an office.
This really depends on the
product/components and its product
life cycle. There is no fixed
rule/number. Sometimes a new
technology can be as much as twice
expensive, yet offers an extremely lowOPEX.
There isno need
for premiumfee,
enough low
hanging fruits are
available = quick
wins.
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Questions regarding how much savings in OpEx are anticipated when implementing Green
technology revealed the similar results: no clear pattern with an equal number of companies
anticipating around 10% and 20% in OpEx savings. Again 60% of respondents gave
alternative answers (Figure 19).
The range of products, components, and technology is too diverse to give a simple rule of
thumb. One cannot lump them together by using the same approach. For instance, a power
management tool for 1000s of desktops may carry relatively little CapEx, has negligible
OpEx, but can add up to significant savings in a short time. This must be treated differently
to a multi-million dollar upgrade of a data center. As a consequence, the answer for the ROI
of a green product/service/component varies between 6 months and 5 years.
Although difficult to quantify by means of a hard number, all companies have significantlyincreased their efforts and resources for energy-efficiency and sustainability compared to
the previous years.
Milestones to improveenergy-efficiency of
our productsshould be set toat least 30-40%.
Indirect improvements (e.g. using 3rd party
next-gen processors) can already trigger20%
by itself. Otherwise the own company hasno
own green contributionHowever, it comes
along with major investments.
20%
20%60%Other 20%
10%
Figure 19: No clear pattern and rule ofthumb for expected savings in OpEx
Carriers should not apply a cookie-cutter approach when it comes to cost
calculations.
The impact of a green purchase has to be assessed in an individual yet holistic
way, and also taking into account potential penalties in case non-compliance
with governmental thresholds.
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6 Conclusion The Green Hype Split
In light of the answers received in this survey and the green activities of companies (thatappear to be of rather discreet nature see Chapter 2.1), the current market situation for
energy efficiency & sustainability can be described in two ways: the green hype is over and
yet the recovery to a realistic situation will take place on split timelines: in-house (internal)
facing initiatives and activities and market/product facing activities and announcements.
To better visualize the green market and its progression in time the hype cycle is used as
template21
. However, certain adjustments are necessary. In case of green, and as shown in
Figure 20 the hype cycle splits up into 2 different recovery slopes.
Past Years: Back in 2008 the emerging green hype was successfully wrapping the market
into a green cloak triggering and causing a severe loss of transparency. The attempts by
companies - in all industry sectors - to improve their image through positive green branding
was pushed too hard, stretched too far and was blown out of proportion. An automobile with
a gas mileage of 14 MPG (bad) now improved to 20 (still bad) was acclaimed by marketing
as ergonomic & green. Plastic wrapping degrading in only 100 years (instead of 500) was
now environmental friendly. Also the T.I.M.E (telecommunication, IT, media, and
entertainment) markets participated (at least partially). A significant number of market
players were happily riding the green wave, believing to have found a new angle for selling
their products a new USP (Unique Selling Point).
But the chase to win & retain customers by addressing their environmental soft spot went out
of control. The situation escalated and the peak of exaggeration was reached sometime
back at the beginning of 2009.
Time
Visibility
Market (external)
In-House (internal)
Spark
Outbreak
Spreadsupported
by Hype
Peak of Exaggeration
Onset ofImmunity
Stability
FastContagion
Dull&
Blunt
Stability
Recovery
Dull&
Blunt
Onset ofNormalization
short -term mid-term long-term
EstablishedBusiness
2009 20102008
TODAY
TODAY
Recovery
Figure 20: The hype cycle splits into 2 curves with both having different recovery times
21http://www.gartner.com/it/products/research/methodologies/research_hype.jsp
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Shortly after this the green bubble imploded. At that time it was challenging for customers
and consumers to tell the differences between the marginal shades of green. Exaggeration
used by marketing triggered an industry-wide loss of credibility and pushed consumers into a
blunt and dull state. They entered the next stage: Immunity.
The hype cycle has now split into two curves (Figure 20). The lower one describes external-
facing green initiatives including marketing announcements and campaigns. The upper curve
represents all green in-house (internal) related activities including community involvement.
The reason for the split and in particular for the low position of the market curve is because
of the lessons-learned companies from various industry sectors have experienced. They
received bad publicity by having launched deceptive advertising or publicly announced
environmental-friendly actions (and not living up to them); essentially overpromising and then
under-delivering. Consequently, market-facing green campaigns now have only a limited
positive impact on branding; simply as a result of green-washing and the fact that too many
companies tried too hard. Naturally, the most promising spots to look for improvements werethrough in-house operations on both the business and the technology level.
Today & Tomorrow: Quiet is the new loud. As mentioned in the introduction, it has become
less noisy around energy-efficiency & sustainability in ICT. But this silence does not reflect a
decline in green activities but rather shows that companies have redrawn their focus to in-
house initiatives. Given the disillusioning hype which affected customers, shareholders, and
even raised the interest of regularity authorities, todays prime directive is to put ones own
house in order first before going on stage and claiming to be green. Too many (sensitized)
different interest groups are observing and monitoring the companies far too closely.
As a consequence, in-house facing initiatives are recovering fast and will soon reach a
normal and stable reality. This will happen presumably in 1-2 years from now (which
coincides with estimated timelines for carbon emission related laws & penalties).
The recovery of the market-facing hype curve will take longer. As a matter of fact, it is
strongly related to the timelines for R&D of new technologies, and consequently the timelines
for large investments. As this does not happen overnight, any significant breakthroughs (e.g.
decline of power consumption of 20-30% while maintaining the same performance) are
estimated to take place in the next 2-4 years. High levels of activity on the product and
service level are indeed present, but behind closed doors and with few (if any)
announcements. As mentioned earlier, sustainability and environmental-friendliness is not a
switch that can be flipped. It does not work for cars and neither does it work for end-
consumer devices and telco equipment.
Sustainability and Energy Efficiency is not a trend that will vanish anytime soon. It is an
emerging industry sector.
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When Giants Flex Their Muscles Green Activities of Silicon Valley ICT Industry Leaders
Opinion Paper 32 Detecon International GmbH
7 The Authors
Dr. Eric Dulkeith is member of the Strategy & Innovation Group in Detecons Silicon Valleyoffice in San Francisco, California and is the core topic leader of Green ICT. The main focus
of his activities is on innovation management and business development of converging
technologies and markets. Before joining Detecon, he worked at IBM Watson Research
Center in New York on future optical on-chip communication architectures. He was awarded
the degree of Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Munich (LMU) for his work on
nanosensor technology. He is the author of numerous publications and has given more than
30 written/oral contributions for international technology magazines, conferences, and
workshops.
Eric Dulkeith can be reached at [email protected]
Rajat Mukherjee is member of the Strategy & Innovation Group in Detecons Silicon Valley
office in San Francisco, California. He is also a member of the Mobile Internet Center of
Excellence at Detecon International GmbH. He was awarded a Bachelors degree in
Electrical Engineering (Honors) by McGill University in Montreal, Canada and a Masters
degree in Management Science and Engineering by Stanford University in Palo Alto, USA.
His prior work in the telecommunications industry has focused on next generation access
and convergence technologies. He is the co-author of numerous patents pending with the
US Patent and Trademark Office on various aspects of ICT technology. His current work atDetecon is on best practices in products and services launch management and on
innovation strategies for future telecommunications networks.
Rajat Mukherjee can be reached at [email protected]
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