5 major events that crashed streaming apps — including the Oscars

Hulu’s (DIS) livestream of the Oscars on Sunday encountered several technical difficulties, frustrating many viewers. This was the first time the awards ceremony was available to stream online. Thousands of users reported issues logging into the platform. Additionally, just minutes before the winners of the Best Picture and Best Actress in a Leading Role categories were announced, the livestream cut out for some subscribers.

Over 108 million people around the world tuned in to watch the boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul in November on Netflix, making the fight the most streamed sporting event ever. Unfortunately, thousands of viewers reported having issues loading the match.

In 2023, Netflix attempted to stream a live reunion for the fourth season of its popular dating show, “Love Is Blind.” However, the event faced significant delays due to technical issues with the livestream.

“To everyone who stayed up late, woke up early, gave up their Sunday afternoon… we are incredibly sorry that the Love Is Blind Live Reunion did not turn out as we had planned,” Netflix posted on X the day of the reunion. “We’re filming it now and we’ll have it on Netflix as soon as humanly possible. Again, thank you and sorry.”

In the early days of streaming, several platforms tried and failed to successfully live stream the Super Bowl. In 2018, viewers watching the Super Bowl on Hulu live TV service missed out on the final minutes of the game. And in 2021, CBS All Access (PARA), the predecessor to Paramount+, crashed during the start of the big game.

While not technically a live event, the season four premiere of “Game of Thrones” drew millions of viewers, overwhelming the cable channel’s then streaming app HBO Go (WBD) and causing it to crash.