<p>The Microsoft cloud-based servers which includes Hotmail, Bing and others have this bizarre contract clause with a power company in Quincy, Washington that states: if the company's energy consumption of electricity is below the power-use target, they can be fined up to $200,000.</p><p>According to the New York Times, Microsoft deliberately wasted $70,000 worth of power "in a commercially unproductive manner" to avoid the stiff penalty.</p><p>Microsoft said because they overestimated how much power they were going to use last year, it was forced to take drastic steps at its large hydroelectric data center.</p><p>As a result of the overestimation, Microsoft wasted a total of 34 million watts of power last year compared to the 5.5 million it used just three days prior to that, you start to get an idea of how wasteful these data centers can be.</p><p><a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/microsoft-purposely-wasting-energy-at-data-centers-to-avoid-massive-fines">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://www.techweekeurope.co.uk/news/report-paints-unflattering-picture-of-microsoft-cloud-93882">Report Paints Unflattering Picture Of Microsoft Cloud</a> (TechWeekEurope UK)</p><p><a href="http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/did-microsoft-deliberately-waste-energy-at-a-data-center-to-avoid-a-fine-24-09-2012/">Did Microsoft deliberately waste energy at a data center to avoid a fine?</a> (Geeky gadgets)</p><p><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/24/technology/data-centers-in-rural-washington-state-gobble-power.html?pagewanted=all">Data Barns in a Farm Town, Gobbling Power and Flexing Muscle</a> (New York Times (blog))</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?pz=1&ned=us&ncl=dNZaN7MtF6OibVM0GLGdDF3QaNmQM">20 additional articles.</a></p>