New study reveals companies can cut CO2 emissions and save money by having telepresence

Thursday, June 17, 2010

According to a new study conducted by Verdantix, an independent research analyst firm, businesses in the U.S. and UK have the ability to cut 5.5 metric tons of CO2 emissions and save the economy nearly $19 billion by 2020 by using telepresence technology.

Telepresence allows business professionals to talk and conduct meetings via a network from multiple worldwide locations. Having these meetings on a network, and thus eliminating travel, is the greenhouse equivalent of taking one million passenger vehicles off the road. Among U.S. companies specifically - the study focused on businesses with more than $1 billion in annual revenues - 4.6 metric tons of CO2 emission could be cut by 2020 with total economy wide financial benefits reaching $14 billion.

"Companies that invest in carbon cutting technologies and re-engineer the way they do business will not only be better placed to succeed as we transition to a low-carbon economy but can experience considerable business benefits during this transition," said CDP chief executive officer Paul Dickinson. "Telepresence is a good example of a low-carbon solution that can bring financial savings and increase productivity while reducing emissions."

Among companies offering managed networks, Cisco has repeatedly stated how much it has saved by switching to telepresence technology. Some reports have Cisco saving as much as $90 million by using the technology.