Amazon’s going to lower its Prime Video bitrates to help telecoms deal with demand
Amazon’s going to lower its Prime Video bitrates to help telecoms deal with increased demand
This action will help reduce the strain on Europe’s networking services, acting as a precautionary measure in case internet usage continues to rise. With many Europeans limiting their travel and moving towards in-home entertainment, it is best for streaming services to reduce their quality to ensure that their customers can get access.
Below is Amazon’s official statement on the matter;
We support the need for careful management of telecom services to ensure they can handle the increased internet demand, with so many people now at home full-time due to Covid-19. Prime Video is working with local authorities and internet service providers where needed to help mitigate any network congestion, including in Europe, where we’ve already begun the effort to reduce streaming bitrates while maintaining a quality streaming experience for our customers.
In the coming days, other major streaming services will likely announce similar changes to their video streaming services. Note that these changes will be temporary, and last as long as the Covid-19 crisis continues.
You can join the discussion on Amazon’s Prime Video service having reduced bitrates to lower networking workloads on the OC3D Forums.