Digital Product Passport: A New Era of Mutual Benefits for Brands and Customers | Latest Information | ASUS ESG website, ASUS ESG goal

In the face of global climate change and environmental sustainability challenges, promoting product and material circularity by reducing products' environmental footprints and improving resource efficiency has become imperative. This trend is directly reflected in the increasing demands for product transparency from both consumers and businesses. For instance, when purchasing products, consumers and businesses no longer solely focused on price or product functionality; the environmental footprint, resource efficiency, and circularity rates of products have become important metrics for procurement.

To enhance consumer "right to know" and "right to choose," the Digital Product Passport (DPP) has emerged as an innovative tool for tracking and recording product lifecycle information, gradually transforming industry operations. The DPP not only addresses consumer demand for product transparency but also serves as a key driving force for implementing corporate circular economy initiatives.

The DPP acts as a product's "identity card," crossing the entire product lifecycle. It records information from material acquisition, manufacturing, transportation, sales, use, resale, to final disposal, providing a comprehensive view of a product's environmental impact at each stage of its lifecycle. It also offers real-time access to information that consumers are interested in, enabling purchase decision-making.

The European Union(EU)'s Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) has launched the related a series of regulations. New Battery Regulation came into effect in 2023, requiring producers of specific batteries to establish a battery DPP database; second, the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), effective from July 2024, defined DPP as "a set of product-specific data that can be accessed electronically to compare different products' carbon footprints and environmental impacts." The ESPR serves as the legal foundation for DPPs and will further regulate different product categories in the future.

There are multiple dimensions for DPP to disclose while under the ESPR regulatory framework. Firstly, product identification. Including Unique product identifier, Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs), and TARIC codes, which facilitate product tracking and management. Secondly, compliance information, such as EU declaration of conformity, technical documents, user manuals, certificates, and safety warnings, which make sure products meet regulatory requirements.

Information about the manufacturer and importer is also mandatory, including the name of authorized representatives, contact information, unique operator identifier, and Economic Operator Registration and Identification number (EORI). Regarding product eco-design, DPP requires product specifications, durability, expected lifetime, repair and upgrade, raw material information, recycled and renewable materials usage, spare parts availability and product end-of-life information. The specific disclosure details of DPPs for various products will ultimately be determined by the authorized regulations for those products.

Under the EU ESPR regulatory, several key products and key sectors have been prioritized for the initial implementation of the DPP. These priority industries include basic raw material manufacturing, such as iron, steel, and aluminum industries; daily consumer products, including detergents, textiles, lubricants, and furniture (including mattresses); and energy-related products, covering both new policies and existing regulations revisions. Additionally, tires, information and communication technology products, paints, other electronic products, and chemicals are also included in the first priority of DPP implementation. ESPR demonstrates its commitment to promoting sustainable product development through the comprehensive implementation of DPP.

During the DPP implementation process, the fashion industry responded proactively, with several well-known brands already adopting this innovation For example, British fashion retailer “Tammam” has partnered with “PicoNext” to fully consolidated its sustainability data in a Digital Product Passports. The Digital Product Passport not only demonstrates Tammam's "fibre-to-finish" philosophy of its ethical and environmental sourcing and production, but also offers additional information on the social impact investments the company makes, in addition to care instructions and reusability information. Other British bag brand “The Morphbag” and Australian circular fashion e-commerce platform “Simple Chic” have also adopted DPP. Britain's largest supermarket chain Tesco has introduced the DPP system in its own clothing brand F&F in 2024, allowing consumers to instantly access information about each garment's material sources and complete supply chain through a simple scan.

While the DPP holds immense potential for driving sustainability, it faces several challenges in practical implementation. How to collection and management of data is the first priority. Due to the extensive supply chains and value chains involved in products, enterprises face complex challenges in determining which data to collect, how to update it in real-time, and how to standardize data processing. Building a robust IT system is a must. Secondly, balancing transparency with trade secrets is another major challenge. While increasing transparency is a core objective of the DPP, protecting sensitive business information is a critical consideration. Additionally, as countries introduce DPP-related policies, the possibility of achieving unified standards across different nations and regions is closely watched. A key focus for the future will be how to avoid significant implementation gaps due to language differences.

As a multinational corporation with global product sales and supply chains, ASUS faces a significant transformation with the launch of DPP. ASUS officially launches the digital product passport for the commercial ExpertBook B series laptop at CES 2025. This highlights ASUS's commitment to incorporating circular economy principles into product lifecycle while getting ahead of global trends and regulations, including the European Green Deal and TCO Gen 10 standards. The DPP for ASUS ExpertBook B series will provide detailed product specifications, repair history records, and recycling information to improve product transparency and lifetime. Going beyond regulatory requirements, we proactively provide product carbon footprint and lifecycle data to help consumers and business partners make an environmentally friendly purchase decision.

The Digital Product Passport (DPP) has become a key tool in promoting the circular economy, not only thoroughly enhancing product transparency but also creating mutual benefits for brands and consumers. By integrating DPP with a "one item, one code" system, consumers can scan unique identifiers on products to gain more details like product sources, manufacturing processes, and material compositions, enabling more informed purchase decision. For brands, this is not just one-way information provision but an important way for understanding consumers' sustainability preferences and needs. By analyzing product sales, green characteristics, and customer feedback, we can more precisely grasp consumers' emphasis on sustainability and, based on these insights, leverage our core technical advantages to develop differentiated green products, thereby creating better business value and brand influence.