Netflix is facing a lawsuit over streaming problems during the highly anticipated Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul fight that aired last Friday.
A Florida man, Ronald “Blue” Denton, filed the lawsuit, calling the stream “unwatchable.”
According to the lawsuit, Denton and others “were faced with legendary problems, including: no access, streaming glitches, and buffering issues.” He accuses Netflix of breach of contract and deceptive business practices. The lawsuit seeks class-action status to represent other affected viewers.
Netflix advertised the Tyson vs. Paul fight as a live event available to subscribers. While the platform is known for on-demand streaming, this marked one of its rare live sports offerings. However, according to the lawsuit, “over 100,000 people” complained online, with users reporting widespread technical issues on social media, with many expressing frustration over paying for what they described as a poor viewing experience. Netflix has upcoming live-events that include the NFL and WWE.
Dave Portnoy, founder of Bar Stool Sports, chimed in on the Netflix streaming problems to his 3.3 million followers during the Tyson vs Paul fight, as did our Cosmic Book News EIC, Matt McGloin.
Things are going bad to worse. #netflix #tysonpaul pic.twitter.com/sjJutpr1Zq
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) November 16, 2024
Working on PC, try that if not working on TV etc https://t.co/cn9bAWqjox
— Cosmic Book News (@cosmicbooknews) November 16, 2024
Denton’s legal filing argues that Netflix had a responsibility to provide a functional stream. Instead, he alleges the company ignored known issues and continued to promote the fight. The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages for affected customers.
Netflix has not publicly commented on the lawsuit; however, Netflix did comment on the streaming issues.
“We don’t want to dismiss the poor experience of some members,” Netflix said in a statement released last Saturday. “And know we have room for improvement, but still consider this event a huge success.”
It remains unclear how many exact viewers were impacted or whether the lawsuit will move forward as a class action.
Despite the technical problems, the event achieved record-breaking and unprecedented viewership.
Per Netflix, Jake “El Gallo de Dorado” Paul and Mike “The Baddest Man on the Planet” Tyson faced off in a record-breaking match that drew over 108 million live global viewers, making it the most-streamed sporting event ever. The fight topped Netflix’s English TV list with 46.6 million views for the entire event, reached #1 in 78 countries, and entered the Top 10 in all 91 countries tracked.
