Netflix’s Tyson-Paul boxing bout gets 65 million viewers at peak
(Bloomberg) — Netflix Inc.’s foray into live sports streaming with the historic boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul drew a massive global audience that peaked at 65 million viewers but resulted in thousands of complaints from viewers about connection problems and frozen screens.
“We crashed the site,” said Paul, 27, after claiming victory over the 58-year-old Tyson. “This is the biggest event.”
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In an internal company memo seen by Bloomberg News, Chief Technology Officer Elizabeth Stone said the bout drew a maximum of 65 million viewers at any one time, rivaling some of the most-watched sporting events.
Some of those viewers took to social media to vent their frustration over glitches in streaming the highly-anticipated showdown. More than 100,000 users reported network issues on the Downdetector website throughout the livestreaming, commenting on slow buffering and network issues. Even boxer Evander Holyfield was struggling to hear the host of the show when he was asked about his infamous fight with Tyson.
Netflix declined to comment on the overall outcome of the event.
The match between former heavyweight champion Tyson and YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, failed to live up to the hype, with critics calling it a lackluster bout. The judges unanimously decided that Paul won the fight after eight rounds without a knockdown.
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