The Commission has recognised the voluntary agreement  for complex set top boxes as an alternative to regulation. The agreement entered into force 1 July 2010.

The impact assessment showed that the proposed voluntary agreement meets the criteria set out in the Ecodesign Directive and that it offers similar energy savings to those that could be obtained from a possible regulation.

The expected savings of the voluntary agreement are 6.5 TWh/year by 2016.

Scope and target

This product group covers digital convertors for TVs, including additional features such as pay-TV and network connectivity.

The Voluntary Agreement entered into force 1 July 2010. The second tier becomes effective in 2013.

Maximum energy consumption targets are specified in annex D and the agreement also includes reporting obligations and monitoring rules.

The signatories have committed to at least 90% of their  CSTBs placed on the EU market would comply with the minimum efficiency requirements in terms of total energy consumption.

Background

Voluntary agreement for this product group was suggested, partly since:

• The energy use of these devises is impacted by the way they are operated by the service providers.
• The function of these devices are quickly evolving, which requires a flexible approach in setting requirements.

Industry representatives have presented a draft voluntary agreement that is expected to be signed by a large number of companies. A report from the Independent Inspector established under the voluntary agreement can be downloaded here.

Draft guidelines for Voluntary Agreements in general will be discussed in Consultation Forum 1 March 2013. For more information, view the section on Voluntary Agreements.