Shoppers won't pay a premium for green gadgets

New report on eco electronics

View more images

3 December 2008 12:47 GMT / By Adam Vaughan

More than half of US shoppers say they won't pay a premium for greener electronics, according to a new report. The GreenFactor study by Cohn & Wolfe suggests that only 15% of US consumers would pay more than average for a gadget with eco credentials.

The study also highlighted awareness as a big barrier to sales in the US (53%) and energy-saving as the number one motivation to buy green (54%). The GreenFactor report surveyed 10,000 people in 12 countries, soliciting their opinions on 27 consumer electronics brands.

In the US, Dell and Apple were seen as green leaders, while Sony and Panasonic scored highly in Japan. In other words, consumers tended to favour their local brands as environmental champions.

Hi-def TVs were the product category that most consumers felt needed greening up (64%), with digital cameras near the bottom (53%). The GreenFactor study will be repeated next year.