Console games downloaded over broadband internet are causing more greenhouse gas emissions than Blu-ray discs delivered via retail stores, new research reveals.
It is not always true that digital distribution of media will have lower carbon emissions than distribution by physical means, at least when file sizes are large, they added.
Researchers from Yale University looked at the carbon footprint of games for consoles such as PlayStation3.
For their analysis, investigators estimated total carbon equivalent emissions for an 8.8 gigabyte game because data for 2010 indicated that to be the average game size.
The bulk of emissions resulted from game play, followed by production and distribution.
"The internet will become more efficient with time, but game files sizes are likely to continue to increase, making the relationship between online services and climate change a matter for further research," the authors wrote in Yale University's Journal of Industrial Ecology.
