Netflix set the new global live sports streaming viewership record, reaching more than 60 Million households globally and peaking at 65 million concurrent streams during the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul co-main event featuring the former heavyweight champion and popular YouTuber-turned-boxer. Netflix’s strategy transcends the boundaries of traditional U.S. sports fandom, aiming to redefine the landscape of live sports coverage on a truly global scale.
However, like their peers in their early live sports journeys, Netflix’s six-bout fight card was marred by technical difficulties, including buffering, picture freezing, and microphone issues from Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions production team.
While this event highlights Netflix’s ability to attract large sports audiences, it also reveals the significant technical demands of live sports streaming — a critical area that competitors have struggled to perfect in their live sports debuts.
Since 2022, Hulu Live TV, YouTube TV, Sling TV, DirecTV, and Amazon Prime Video have also encountered similar technical issues during live sports broadcasts. The list includes:
- Hulu Live TV’s outage during Game 3 of the ALDS in October 2024 caused thousands of users to miss the Cleveland Guardians’ dramatic walk-off home run win over the New York Yankees. The incident occurred just hours after Hulu had increased the price of its live TV service by $6.
- In May 2023, YouTube TV experienced an outage during TNT’s broadcast of Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals between the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics. The outage left some viewers unable to watch the final moments of the game.
- After a flawless start to its debut season, YouTube TV’s NFL Sunday Ticket ran into issues during Week 8 of the 2023 NFL season. Some users reported experiencing audio issues, buffering, and other technical problems while trying to watch games on the streaming service.
- Amazon Prime Video’s debut of Thursday Night Football in 2022 was tainted by technical difficulties, with some users experiencing buffering, volume mixing issues, and audio syncing problems.
- Other streaming services, such as DirecTV’s NFL Sunday Ticket, NFL+, and the RedZone Channel available on Sling TV and YouTube TV, also experienced technical issues during Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season.
According to streaming media analyst Dan Rayburn, one theory that led to the poor user experience is that Netflix relies on its own proprietary Open Connect content delivery network rather than the industry best practice of a multi-CDN solution.
I have a deep appreciation for the frustrations and disappointment felt by platforms, partners, and consumers when things don’t go according to plan. Live events require an elevated degree of technical expertise, including real-time encoding capabilities, exceptionally low latency, and a robust infrastructure capable of accommodating abrupt surges in viewership.
During my tenure at PlayStation, we encountered technical difficulties with DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket on PS3 during Week 1 of the 2014 NFL season. For a relatively expensive subscription service that immediately loses its value after the live event concludes, I can empathize with those frustrated with Netflix.
However, having worked directly with Netflix during my time at PlayStation and Meta, I have no doubt they have smart people feverishly collaborating on solutions and mitigation plans. Netflix’s unique company culture requires it to do so, and those who join Netflix are fully aware of what they are signing up for including the company’s “keeper’s test”. In an email to employees following customer complaints, Netflix Chief Technology Elizabeth wrote:
“This unprecedented scale created many technical challenges, which the launch team tackled brilliantly by prioritizing stability of the stream for the majority of viewers.
I’m sure many of you have seen the chatter in the press and on social media about the quality issues.
We don’t want to dismiss the poor experience of some members and know we have room for improvement, but still consider this event a huge success.” according to Bloomberg.
Benchmarking Netflix against their global peer set, they will find that Amazon Prime Video and YouTube have successfully recovered and now provide seamless live sports viewing experiences.
Netflix has a lot at stake for NFL Christmas Day Games
Netflix has the potential to set another streaming record. The 2024 NFL Wild Card Game featuring the Miami Dolphins and eventual Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs set a record as the most-watched live streaming event in US history, garnering a staggering 24.6 million viewers.
Netflix reportedly agreed to pay the NFL $150 million for the 2024 games. As part of its three-year agreement with the NFL, Netflix will broadcast at least one game in both 2025 and 2026 in addition to its two games in 2024. The streaming giant recently revealed that the company has sold out of NFL Christmas Day ad inventory.
Netflix sponsorship packages reportedly cost advertisers $5 million for eight 30-second ad units. In addition to its first-party measurement, Netflix has struck a partnership with Nielsen to measure audiences in a more valid comparison to traditional network and cable programming.
To mitigate risk due to Netflix’s lack of experience in NFL coverage and with an assist from the league, Netflix secured CBS Sports as a production partner. However, even exceptional teams can lose by playing outside their strengths. Technical “turnovers” like buffering, audio problems, and other glitches could prompt the NFL to prematurely end its partnership with Netflix and seek an alternative provider if Netflix fails to meet the moment. While licensing revenue is important to the league, the NFL also prioritizes user experience and reliability.
Furthermore, Netflix’s NFL rights serve as a test for the league and the streaming giant to explore Netflix’s long-term viability to compete for a larger package of rights beyond their three-year Christmas Day agreement. This includes the possibility of an international package featuring up to 16 games at the same time Netflix’s expanding content budget increases its investment towards live events.
Severe technical difficulties on Christmas Day could have severe repercussions, not only jeopardizing Netflix’s burgeoning advertising business but also potentially straining its long-term relationship with the NFL and other sports leagues, such as the UFC, which is owned by TKO Group Holdings, the same company that owns WWE.
Netflix troubleshooting should include Tiger Team, testing plan
To optimize the streaming experience for future live events, Netflix should undertake a comprehensive post-mortem analysis of the Paul-Tyson event and create an internal Tiger Team of relevant cross-functional stakeholders. This analysis should involve internal and external stakeholders, including partner engagement, site reliability engineering, quality assurance, incident response teams, and content delivery. At the time of this publishing, it’s likely that Netflix has already begun this common industry practice.
However, as their next high-profile event involves multiple strategic partners, Netflix will need to enlist support from their Christmas Day partners and the NFL’s other streaming partners. This could involve gathering historical data on previous streaming disruptions NFL fans experienced on DirecTV Stream, Sling TV, YouTube TV, and Amazon Prime Video.
In the unlikely event they haven’t already, Netflix should also proactively reach out to CBS Sports, their NFL production partner, to inquire about best practices and learnings from the NFL games streamed live on Paramount+. While it may seem unconventional for Paramount to help Netflix, the companies share a strong partnership as Paramount licenses a variety of shows to Netflix. These types of relationships can build bridges across the two companies, including the Paramount teams, from which Netflix could benefit from technical consultation.
Netflix should also approach the NFL with a request for a limited test featuring two CBS Sports NFL broadcasts before the Christmas Day games. I recommend that Netflix’s first test should be exclusive to Netflix and NFL employees based on my prior experience and industry norms. Absent the input of a data scientist, I propose the second test’s cohort would feature Netflix subscribers who have watched The Roast of Tom Brady, the Quarterback or Receiver docuseries, or the Tyson-Paul fight. They could conduct these tests globally or isolate them to a more restricted geographic footprint based on the target audience and contractual obligations.
This testing plan would mimic YouTube’s preseason testing of NFL games ahead of their inaugural season presenting NFL Sunday Ticket. In 2023, YouTube TV tested multiview through a limited release ahead of its broader launch. Amazon Prime Video is currently testing a similar multiview feature.
To guarantee a seamless streaming experience for fans, Netflix, CBS Sports, and the NFL should collaborate to develop a robust execution plan that includes key milestones and a clear escalation plan tailored explicitly for Christmas Day. This collaborative approach will enhance Netflix’s ability to deliver a seamless streaming experience for future major events.
Closing thoughts
The pressure is on Netflix’s Dream Team to deliver or risk losing its NFL rights to another competitor, such as Apple TV – a competitor with unlimited resources, an existing live sports portfolio that includes MLB and MLS, and an existing relationship with the NFL through a five-year Super Bowl Halftime sponsorship.
Netflix has boldly ventured into uncharted territory with a unique global approach. While it may be tempting to focus solely on their execution during their initial live sports broadcast, it’s crucial to recognize the audacity of their ambition with a nuanced perspective relative to their contemporaries.
Andrew Wamugi, an entertainment, sports, media, and technology professional, contributed to the content strategy of PlayStation 4 and Meta’s Spark AR platform during their early stages through partnerships with streaming media companies, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu and YouTube, and sports leagues like the NBA, MLB, NHL, NFL, and several European football clubs. You can read more of his insights and perspective in his newsletter, Fetch The Deal.
