Orcon artificially throttling Netflix 4K?

Forums › 2degrees (including Slingshot, Orcon, Flip, Stuff Fibre, MyRepublic, 2talk and Vocus) › Orcon artificially throttling Netflix 4K?

bigbadkiwi

77 posts

Master Geek

#272875 21-Jul-2020 22:44

I have done a bit of research over the past week here in CHCH, namely the bitrates of the Netflix Originals 'Control z' and 'Cursed' streamed from three different ISPs.

Here are my results;

- Me: Orcon 1000/500, 2018 Samsung 4K TV app - both 11.44mb/s

- Cousin in CHCH: Orcon 100/20, 2017 Samsung 4K TV app - both 11.44mb/s

- best mate: Spark 100/20, 2018 LG TV app - both 15.25mb/s

- Brother's flat in CHCH: 2degrees 1000/500, 2020 QLED Samsung (jealous) - both 15.25mb/s (signed in with my premium Netflix account)

I don't know fully what goes on, from a technical standpoint, behind the scenes with ISPs and Netflix caches, but it does appear that something is not right with Orcon. Out of three different ISP's checked here in Chch, ONLY Orcon streamed at a lower bitrate when playing the same Netflix Ultra HD content. Is it realistically possible the Orcon could be artificially throttling Netflix back to a slightly lower bitrate?

Talkiet

4689 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#2526824 21-Jul-2020 22:54

I think it's incredibly unlikely. Of course that's just my opinion. It would be cheaper to put more capacity in than to attempt to throttle NF.

Cheers - N

(I am responsible for the Spark NF servers though and have a very good understanding of how the system works)

Please note all comments are the product of my own brain and don't necessarily represent the position or opinions of my employer, previous employers, colleagues, friends or pets.

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bigbadkiwi

77 posts

Master Geek

#2526828 21-Jul-2020 23:02

Talkiet:

I think it's incredibly unlikely. Of course that's just my opinion. It would be cheaper to put more capacity in than to attempt to throttle NF.

Cheers - N

(I am responsible for the Spark NF servers though and have a very good understanding of how the system works)

And I fully trust your expertise in this field. These are just the results that I collected the past weekend, which are a little bit surprising.

At least my results confirm you are doing a great job with the Spark NF servers 🤣

openmedia

3047 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#2526832 21-Jul-2020 23:30

Apples and Oranges? Are the devices streaming using the same Audio/Video codecs?

Generally known online as OpenMedia, now working for Red Hat APAC as a Technology Evangelist and Portfolio Architect. Still playing with MythTV and digital media on the side.

bigbadkiwi

77 posts

Master Geek

#2526840 22-Jul-2020 01:19

openmedia:

Apples and Oranges? Are the devices streaming using the same Audio/Video codecs?

The first three examples use 4k HDR HEVC codecs, not VP9. I don't have the info for the codec for the 2020 QLED (I don't believe I've heard of any new TVs implementing the new AV1 Codec)

I don't have information on the Audio codecs for the examples above, sorry.

Sounddude

I fix stuff!
1903 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

2degrees

Lifetime subscriber

#2526891 22-Jul-2020 09:24

We do not do any throttling and we have caches in Christchurch so the content is very local to your connection.

Netflix chooses the Bitrates it streams at based on a number of factors with the biggest factor being how the media is encoded, the player and what codecs it can support and also your netflix plan.

bigbadkiwi

77 posts

Master Geek

#2526918 22-Jul-2020 10:32

Sounddude:

We do not do any throttling and we have caches in Christchurch so the content is very local to your connection.

Netflix chooses the Bitrates it streams at based on a number of factors with the biggest factor being how the media is encoded, the player and what codecs it can support and also your netflix plan.

Perfect response. I initially asked tech support to provide me an answer for this issue, as they were going to get an answer from the tier 2 team and get back to me. As happened once or twice in the last few years regarding relatively minor issues, most times I actually never hear back from them.

In this case I was completely wrong in my assumptions regarding artificial throttling, and for that I apologise to Vocus (Orcon).