Consumers could save more than $1 billion (£0.6bn) on energy bills every year as a result of the new efficiency standards for pay-TV box sets.

The US Department of Energy along with a group of organisations have announced non-regulatory standards which will improve the efficiency of set-top boxes by as much as 45% by 2017 while saving householders billions of dollars.

They are also expected to save enough electricity to power 700,000 homes and cut carbon emissions by more than five million metric tons every year.

The agreement requires the pay-TV industry to publicly report the energy use of model-specific set-top boxes. It also needs an annual audit of service providers by an independent auditor to ensure they are performing at the efficiency levels specified in the agreement.

Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said: “The set-top box efficiency standards will save families money by saving energy while delivering high quality appliances for consumers that keep pace with technological innovation.”

The standards are a collaborative approach between the Energy Department, the pay-TV industry and energy efficiency groups.