INDUSTRY NEWS
‘Powering down’ idle CPE could free enough energy to run 70 data centres, says BBF
According to standards organisation The Broadband Forum, its new specification can help save enough energy to run 70 small data centres, by ‘powering down’ Customer Premise Equipment (CPE) when they are not in use. The estimate is based on a study conducted by Orange in 2023. The operator found that turning off the 5GHz radio for 10 hours per day across approximately eleven million of its Livebox subscribers in France would save 64 GWh annually, the equivalent of the annual consumption of a city with 40,000 inhabitants. The figure is based on turning off the Wi-Fi radio only, while the rest of the router (ONU, Ethernet switch, phone port, processor, and power supply) continues to run. Broadband equipment is
one of the ‘quiet constants’ of the connected home, with CPE such as home gateways, repeaters, and set-top boxes often forgotten about in the corner of the home and left to run 24/7. As a result, CPE accounts for around 70% of the energy consumed by fixed broadband networks. The latest extensions embedded in the Broadband
a defining design consideration for broadband equipment,” said SoftAtHome Chief HGW Standardization Architect David Cluytens. “This work from the Broadband Forum reflects a collective global industry effort to align broadband technologies with sustainability objectives, such as those outlined in the French Energy Transition Law for Green Growth”, he continued. The BBF’s TR-181 device data model, when used over a User Services Platform (USP/ TR-369)-enabled network, introduces standardised mechanisms for controlling and monitoring power consumption of embedded network technologies, such as Wi-Fi, Ethernet, USB, xPON, and Thread. The TR-181 device data model allows BSPs to manage
connected devices and ensures interoperability between devices and management software from different vendors. “The latest power saving efforts highlight how the Broadband Forum’s members continue to look for ways to improve economic and environmental sustainability for the industry,” said Broadband Forum CEO Craig Thomas. “The TR-181 update represents a huge step forward for hitting sustainability targets in the years ahead.” Significantly, remote power consumption monitoring for individual hardware components is enabled thanks to the update. The power management capability can be installed as a containerized solution in hardware from different vendors remotely.
Forum’s TR-181 Issue 2 Amendment 20 Data
Model will allow broadband service providers (BSPs) and manufacturers to design and introduce even smarter and more environmentally friendly products, while maintaining a high level of performance and service for customers. “As connected homes grow increasingly sophisticated, energy efficiency is becoming
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ISSUE 43 | Q1 2026
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