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EU Calls On Netflix To Switch To SD During Coronavirus (Update: Netflix agrees. YouTube too. See threadmarks)

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Deleted member 4262

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
3,633
UPDATE: Netflix announces changes to bitrates






Original post:

The European Union's Internal Market and Services Commissioner, Thierry Breton, has called on streaming platforms such as Netflix and YouTube to take measures to prevent internet gridlock as the response to the Coronavirus places additional strain on communications networks. In a call placed Wednesday, he urged Netflix CEO Reed Hastings to serve only standard definition content to users in times of peak demand.

With vast numbers of people now working from home, and using video chat and digital messages to stay in touch with friends and family, and as users increase their time spent on streaming platforms, Breton said streamers' had a role to play in ensuring telecom operators weren't overwhelmed. "Streaming platforms, telecom operators and users, we all have a joint responsibility to take steps to ensure the smooth functioning of the internet during the battle against the virus propagation," Breton said, in a statement released after his call.
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deadline.com

Netflix To Limit Streaming Quality For European Subscribers To Preserve Bandwidth During Coronavirus Crisis

EU Industry chief Thierry Breton put in a call to Netflix's CEO Reed Hastings to ask streamers to limit bandwidth usage as people stay home.
deadline.com deadline.com
 
Last edited:

alex.magnus

Member
Oct 28, 2017
405
well this is just for peak emergency hours during the day, so at night it should be fine really... maybe just push it down HD instead of SD?
 
nampad

nampad

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
4,238
Hey, I am staying at home in isolation but please don't take away my HD quality.

The networks can't be that overcrowded?
 
Midas

Midas

Member
Oct 27, 2017
5,537
Haha amazing. I'll cancel my Netflix sub during the period, of it'll happen. No hard feelings, but I'm not paying for SD.
 
Fularu

Fularu

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,609
Th3BranMan said:
Perhaps he should call on telecoms to improve the infrastructure instead.
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Where's that « upload better infrastructure » button again?

Europe's infrastructure is already prety robust but no provider should plan capacity around a full on European containment situation, that's crazy talk
 

peppersky

Banned
Mar 9, 2018
1,174
imagine actually caring about watching your shitty netflix shows in 4k when there's literally a global pandemic going on
 
Fularu

Fularu

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,609
nampad said:
Hey, I am staying at home in isolation but please don't take away my HD quality.

The networks can't be that overcrowded?
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You now have tens of millions of people using infrastructures in ways never intended in the first place

The strain it places on the infrastructure is massive
 
Ac30

Ac30

Member
Oct 30, 2017
14,527
London
They're expecting me and my spouse to work from home on 150GB/month so how about we tackle those fucking caps first
 
Eggiem

Eggiem

Member
Oct 27, 2017
8,787
Feels like the EU should have no say this. Every country is different and the service providers know whats best. German Telekom said there are no problems because of this virus atm. No reason to take away the last few things people can have fun with alone.
 
Slayven

Slayven

Never read a comic in his life
Moderator
Oct 25, 2017
93,257
The vast majority of people won't even notice. Most folks would still be using A/V cables on their tvs if they hadn't been dropped
 
PJV3

PJV3

Member
Oct 25, 2017
25,676
London
Eggiem said:
Feels like the EU should have no say this. Every country is different and the service providers know whats best. German Telekom said there are no problems because of this virus atm. No reason to take away the last few things people can have fun with alone.
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The talk is about avoiding the system becoming overwhelmed, i assume if it isn't then nothing will change.
 
Fularu

Fularu

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,609
Eggiem said:
Feels like the EU should have no say this. Every country is different and the service providers know whats best. German Telekom said there are no problems because of this virus atm. No reason to take away the last few things people can have fun with alone.
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Are containment orders in place in Germany like they are in France, Italy or Belgium?
 
mantis

mantis

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,827
Sounds like a reasonable request in case the networks could not handle the increased load anymore.
 
signal

signal

Member
Oct 28, 2017
40,223
I only watch content at 720p max so 🤷‍♂️ from moi. Sucks if you're paying for extra, maybe Netflix will reimburse.

Just some pixels no need to get angry.
 
Ac30

Ac30

Member
Oct 30, 2017
14,527
London
Fularu said:
What kind of work are you doing that would struggle on 150 gb? I'm not sarcastic btw
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My spouse is stuck in video conference calls for 2-3 hours a day, at minimum. She does project management for an NGO.

My team at work has also requested daily catch-up calls, plus a ton of random in-between F2F meetings that are now done via videoconference. I try to use work 4G as much as I can for those.
 
dodo

dodo

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,997
regardless of whether or not this happens or is itself the most realistic idea the resistance some people have to even the abstract idea of temporarily giving up a small luxury for someone else's benefit is pathetic
 

Deleted member 41520

Banned
Mar 29, 2018
7,078
IIRC the energy and environmental impact of 4k is like 10x higher than SD.

In terms of servers, basically. Tons more data and tons more serving to do per episode. We could slash the amount of server farms they need (and thus energy) if they used SD as standard. 4k should be VERY expensive to offset this.
 
Eggiem

Eggiem

Member
Oct 27, 2017
8,787
Fularu said:
Are containment orders in place in Germany like they are in France, Italy or Belgium?
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Strong recommendations to stay inside and everything is closed except medical stuff and grocery stores. So there is no reason to go out if you can work from home / dont have to work and have enough food. My city of 200.000 inhabitants is a ghost town.
 
Serious Sam

Serious Sam

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
4,354
This is absolutely fair request from the EU considering the circumstances. People need good quality uninterrupted internet connections to work from home properly.
 
dodo

dodo

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,997
Maximo said:
Imagine wasting time posting on the internet on a gaming enthusiast forum on a topic about Netflix when there are starving children in Africa.
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i mean i love video games but if i could press a button that deleted video games and ended poverty i would. the fact that the very thought of temporarily giving up 4K streaming video (which will probably not happen anyway) has people upset is impossible for me to sympathize with sorry

Doctor_Thomas said:
Imagine telling people to stay home and then limiting their entertainment options while at home.
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playing the world's smallest violin
 
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