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'House Of Cards' Triggers Netflix Traffic Surge

The release of the third season of Netflix's "House of Cards" has triggered an expected bump in Netflix traffic as users flock to binge watch all thirteen new episodes. A Sandvine blog post has detailed anonymous data from one unnamed ISP. Last Friday and Saturday evenings saw a 10%-15% jump in Netflix traffic over the previous week, while Sunday evening saw an even larger 30-35% increase.

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"Since I’m personally only six episodes into the new season, I’m going to end this blog here and get back to streaming the remaining episodes," says Sandvine's Dan Deeth. "Who knows, maybe I can help generate a Monday evening Netflix spike for my ISP."

Netflix's push into original programming will expand further in March and April. The streaming provider is also preparing to release the new Tina Fey-created comedy "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," and a new dramatic series "Bloodline" by the creators of "Damages." The company's take on Marvel's Daredevil is also scheduled to arrive on April 10.
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Titus
Mr Gradenko
join:2004-06-26

Titus

Member

It could also be

Netflix DVD/Streaming subscribers who, for one reason or another, can't return and expect to receive their disks in under a week. I have both services, and my streaming is way up since the disks no longer turnaround in anything resembling a sane timeframe.

Omega
Premium Member
join:2002-07-30
Golden, CO

Omega

Premium Member

Re: It could also be

I have the same turnaround I've always had. Mail it one day, wait a day, receive it the day after. sometimes I have to wait two days between because I miss the mail pick up time.

Karl Bode
News Guy
join:2000-03-02

Karl Bode

News Guy

Re: It could also be

I've had a lot of folks e-mail me saying their DVD delivery has taken a major dive. I think they did drop their distribution center count, so I'm guessing different parts of the country are impacted differently.

norm
join:2012-10-18
Pittsburgh, PA

norm

Member

Re: It could also be

Things have been fine here in the Pittsburgh, PA area. I'm not sure if there's a Netflix distribution center here but I do know there's a Gamefly distribution center here. I would gladly maintain my current subscription cost of $20 something for streaming only if it meant they no longer had a physical medium and instead it was all streaming. Actually, I'd even be willing to pay more for it.

Titus
Mr Gradenko
join:2004-06-26

Titus to Karl Bode

Member

to Karl Bode
The official word is a change in sorting at the USPS. The dive in service for me began around MLK birthday. 3-day total turnaround became 5. Now I'm into a pattern where mailing disks back on Monday means I'll maybe receive the replacements by Saturday. Unlimited is anything but. My call to netflix's 'DVD center' - yes, there is one and you'll find yourself on hold at the main number - amounted to a script whereby you hear "We're working with the PO to resolve the problem." Asking them to explain the problem or the proposed solution is insanity if you do it more than once.

CodeeCB
Premium Member
join:2001-10-01
Minneapolis, MN

CodeeCB

Premium Member

Re: It could also be

I haven't had any issues, if I return discs on Monday my new ones arrive weds. I usually keep until Friday and then return so they ship me the new releases Monday for Tues delivery though. Doing away with sat processing cut down the number of discs I receive but it still works out fine if I plan a little bit. Either way I get new discs 2 days after I place the returns in my mailbox.

Titus
Mr Gradenko
join:2004-06-26

Titus

Member

Re: It could also be

It apparently does involve area, and perhaps how the distribution centers are situated. I know my local mail from town has to go 20 miles to a city for a postmark, but still, I used to get 3-day total turnaround 80% of the time. The 2 disks I mailed from the PO Monday arrived at Netflix yesterday. I doubt the new disks will arrive before Monday. That's abysmal 1st class mail service anyway you cut it.

joebob
@quakerma.com

joebob to Karl Bode

Anon

to Karl Bode
Could be. I had slow turnaround for about a month. It's back to normal now. I suspected the weather here in the northeast could have been a factor.

Karl Bode
News Guy
join:2000-03-02

Karl Bode

News Guy

Re: It could also be

didn't they also nix Saturday disc processing or something?

Samual
@myvzw.com

Samual to Karl Bode

Anon

to Karl Bode
I can't speak to what Netflix has done with their distribution centers, but I can tell you that USPS is making changes that negatively impact delivery times. My post office no longer has a one day delivery area for first class mail, everything is at least two days now, even a letter sent across the street.

They used to get three daily truck rolls here, 6:00AM, 12:00PM, and 6:00PM. Now they get the first one and that's it, so if you mail something today it doesn't get to the sorting facility until tomorrow, where it has to sit and wait for a truck to take it to wherever.

USPS is accelerating their inevitable irrelevance with decisions like these, but that's another story....

Titus
Mr Gradenko
join:2004-06-26

Titus

Member

Re: It could also be

check this -

»www.savethepostoffice.co ··· e-saying

Samual
@myvzw.com

Samual

Anon

Re: It could also be

That's a very good read. Thank you for sharing.

aaronwt
Premium Member
join:2004-11-07
Woodbridge, VA
Asus RT-AX89

aaronwt to Titus

Premium Member

to Titus
said by Titus:

Netflix DVD/Streaming subscribers who, for one reason or another, can't return and expect to receive their disks in under a week. I have both services, and my streaming is way up since the disks no longer turnaround in anything resembling a sane timeframe.

I was having disc issues earlier this year and it started taking two days for me to receive the discs. Its not quite back the normal one day for all discs, but over half of them are arriving in one day now.

I guess I contributed to the Netflix surge. I watched the thirteen episodes of season three this past Sunday

andyross
MVM
join:2003-05-04
Aurora, IL

andyross to Titus

MVM

to Titus
I've had no real disk time problems here in the Chicago area. Netflix no longer processes on Saturdays, so anything you mail on a Friday won't be marked as received until Monday.

Titus
Mr Gradenko
join:2004-06-26

Titus

Member

Anyway, my strategy is to report the disk missing the day I'm able to do that since the return time is now at 3 or more business days.

DonCE
@softplus.net

DonCE

Anon

Privacy Invasion

Sounds like a major privacy invasion that Sandvine is able to collect usage data like that. Does anyone know who the "anonymous" cable company is? I wouldn't put it past Comcast.
smcallah
join:2004-08-05
Home

smcallah

Member

Re: Privacy Invasion

How is it a privacy invasion if they are not listing what individual customers are doing?

CodeeCB
Premium Member
join:2001-10-01
Minneapolis, MN

CodeeCB to DonCE

Premium Member

to DonCE
How is it a privacy invasion? If you don't even know the cable company how the hell can you possibly be concerned about individual usage? And even then so what?

Anonymous_
Anonymous
Premium Member
join:2004-06-21
127.0.0.1

1 edit

Anonymous_ to DonCE

Premium Member

to DonCE
comcast is the only partnered isp
in the US