Subscribers worldwide were expressing frustration as Netflix’s live stream of the highly anticipated boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul suffered from significant technical difficulties.
The event kicked off at 03:00 South African time, featuring several preliminary fights before the main event between Tyson and Paul. However, numerous viewers reported problems with the stream almost immediately, including freezing, loss of sound, and delays in loading.
Some users could watch the stream without issues, but reports escalated as the main match began around 07:00. Viewers encountered an error message stating, “Netflix has encountered an error. Retrying in 14 seconds. Code: tvq-rnd-101.”
Monitoring site, Downdetector confirmed widespread disruption for users globally. Complaints primarily focused on the live stream of the Tyson vs. Paul fight, while other Netflix content remained accessible.
On social media, reactions ranged from humour to dismay. One user quipped, “Is Paul v Tyson fight worse than Fyre Fest?” while another lamented, “This is like watching the fight on dial-up…” Many reported that the stream was stuck on buffering at 25%, leading to frustration as the Netflix app repeatedly conducted connectivity checks before suggesting users attempt to relaunch the stream.
“I am too old for buffering nonsense. And yet they wanted EPL rights?” one disappointed viewer said. Another added, “I’ve missed half of this fight because of you, Netflix. “
This isn’t the first time Netflix has encountered technical difficulties during live events. In October 2016, the platform crashed completely with the release of the first season of Luke Cage. A live reunion episode of the dating reality show Love Is Blind also encountered severe challenges last year, prompting Netflix to apologise to frustrated users.
Earlier this year, Netflix began venturing into live programming, with a comedy special from Chris Rock showcasing this new direction. The live reunion episode was intended to significantly test the platform’s capabilities beyond its established on-demand video offerings. It was also touted as a unique opportunity for viewers to influence the questions posed to participants—an initiative that was rendered impossible due to the crash. Netflix responded by promising to record the episode for later viewing.
Netflix has not publicly commented on the widespread outages experienced during the Tyson vs. Paul case.
