YouTube downgrades streaming quality in the EU to SD in response to the surge in access demand

After Netflix, YouTube will also reduce the streaming quality in the European Union region to minimize network overload / congestion due to the sudden increase in demand for users in the region in the meantime. recently. The move comes as nearly all EU offices, schools and public authorities have ceased operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving millions working at home. In addition, the new travel ban / restriction enacted in many EU countries has also led people to look for home entertainment, leading to traffic to entertainment service platforms. online spike.

Recently, Chairman of the EU internal market committee, Mr. Thierry Breton also had to ask people to join hands to reduce the consumption of internet traffic to avoid local congestion in some areas, making the network Internet network paralysis, in which, restricting network access and transferring streaming content from HD (high definition) to SD quality (standard definition) are the most mentioned measures .

YouTube's decision to temporarily shift the default streaming quality to SD standards in the EU came after a live conversation between Thierry Breton and Google executive Sundar Pichai and YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki. YouTube said that so far, it only recorded peak traffic in some EU countries, in certain time frames, but still decided to respond to the call from side of EU leaders to reduce 'common tensions in the whole region'.

'We are committed to temporarily moving all YouTube traffic in the EU from HD (High Definition) to SD (Standard Definition) by default'

- YouTube

Before YouTube, Netflix had implemented similar measures. And according to estimates of the platform, traffic on European networks will decrease by about 25%. Similarly, YouTube's move to SD streaming for EU users will also help significantly reduce internet traffic in Europe, especially when the number of users of the platform is extremely large.

Over the past 1 week, all major internet providers in the EU have simultaneously recorded a spike in traffic, but there have been no cases of downtime or overload. However, in the coming time, when measures to limit the spread of pandemic EU officials continue to be strengthened, the demand for internet use will certainly increase even more.