Video rental service Netflix might be experiencing up to a 25 percent drop in streaming usage activity in the U.S., according to research conducted by Procera.
If true, the lowered activity wouldn’t be a huge surprise. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings mentioned there could be a drop in user activity due to the Olympic games during the company’s Q2 2012 earnings call last week. The drop, he said, would likely occur over the two weeks that the games were being played in London, but Hastings said the company isn’t worried about it affecting subscriber rates. Also, he predicted that people who weren’t watching due to the Olympics would end up compensating for the lost activity during non-peak viewing hours, or by watching more videos after the games have ended.
The Olympics isn’t the only sporting event that supposedly causes a dip in streaming activity for Netflix. February’s NFL Superbowl was also reported to have caused Netflix streaming to decline upwards of 40 percent in the U.S.
Procera’s report also indicated that streaming usage in Canada remained unchanged for Netflix. Overall, the report said, streaming usage was up 100 percent in North America.
Via PaidContent
Olympic rings photo via Steve Heap / Shutterstock
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