BT-owned provider Plusnet are often one of the most open providers in giving out details about what is happening on their network, and data they have exposed on the initial impact of VoD streaming service Netflix on their network is no exception.The initial spike of usage for the service - which has of course made up such a big proportion of North American bandwidth - resulted in at least 60Mb of the provider's overall bandwidth being taken up by Netflix users at peak times in the days after the launch of the service:
Netflix launched in the UK earlier this month with the first month on the service being free (£6 per month afterwards) for new joiners - so it would be no surprise to see an initial spike fall away once Netflix has been operating here for a while, and Plusnet have already noticed a "slight reduction" in bandwidth demand for Netflix.Plusnet's Chris Parr:
"So, if you're streaming or downloading content through Netflix or LOVEFiLM, you're probably best to opt for fast broadband speeds and a generous monthly data allowance. Or, at least, to work out how many films you can view a month without going over your limit, and only watch that number, so you're not charged extra for excess data.Research from traffic shaping vendor Sandvine in the US has revealed that the average Netflix user there watches around 30 shows (21 hours of streaming) per month, chewing through anything up to 48GB worth of usage on Netflix alone.
Remember that, with Plusnet, your overnight usage (between midnight and 8am) does not count towards your monthly usage allowance, so all you night owls out there can stream movies during the early hours to your hearts content."
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