Netflix and YouTube will limit streaming quality in Europe.
Netflix and YouTube will limit their streaming quality in the EU. The European Union requested this decision and has asked both companies to reduce server load and power consumption.
The use of both services has increased tremendously due to the Coronavirus outbreak worldwide, including in Europe.
People use these services a lot while staying at home.
Netflix says it will reduce data consumption by 25 percent, but users will still have access to high-quality video streaming. Typically, watching an hour of video in standard definition (SD, i.e., 480p) consumes 1 GB of data, while watching an hour of video in HD consumes 3 GB.
YouTube says its service has been under pressure for a while, but it has moved all traffic to SD streaming after the European Union requested it.
The two companies announced the broadcast restrictions after a phone call with Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for the Internet Market. The commissioner later commended the two companies for their quick action and said that thanks to their initiative, the internet will continue to work better during the COVID-19 crisis.
