20 March 2020

Netflix to reduce EU bandwidth by 25% to ease network strain


Netflix is cutting back on the bandwidth it takes to stream videos to members in the European Union after a European Commission member voiced concerns over network strain.

"Following the discussions between Commissioner Thierry Breton and Reed Hastings — and given the extraordinary challenges raised by the coronavirus — Netflix has decided to begin reducing bit rates across all our streams in Europe for 30 days," a Netflix spokesperson told Protocol. "We estimate that this will reduce Netflix traffic on European networks by around 25% while also ensuring a good quality service for our members."

Netflix has long used its own caching appliances to deliver content close to the edge; with its latest tweak, the company now seems to address concerns that the last mile is being overloaded with streams while people need to hunker down at home.


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