Foxtel ‘devastated’ over Game of Thrones streaming meltdown
Foxtel has apologised after its streaming services collapsed during one of its key days of the year, the premiere of the new season of Game Of Thrones.
Foxtel Now launched under its new brand just a month ago, replacing Foxtel Play and the company’s previous failed joint venture with Seven West Media, Presto.
The Foxtel brand has recently been revamped
The seventh season of Game Of Thrones was a key part of Foxtel Now’s packaging strategy and marketing messages.
But as angry customers complained about being unable to watch, the company tonight issued an apology, saying it was “devastated”.
The company also appeared to blame the problem on global issues, rather than technical problems with its own infrastructure, although it did not go into details.
The statement said:
Game of Thrones Phenomenon Crash Sites Across the Globe!
Tonight’s global premiere of the new season of GAME OF THRONES has caused technical glitches around the world, with online sites crashing in the United States, Latin America and Australia.
The show’s producer and U.S. broadcaster, HBO, reported its technical systems could not cope and in Australia, the surge of demand for Foxtel’s recently launched online product, Foxtel Now, also experienced customer meltdown.
Foxtel spokesman, Bruce Meagher said tonight, “We are devastated that some customers experienced technical issues tonight. As was the case in the U.S. and Latin America, the unprecedented rush for a subscription just prior to the telecast, crashed the system. Foxtel engineers are working through the night to resolve the issue.
“It’s most unfortunate and we apologise to those affected. We are committed to resolving the technical faults immediately and together with our broadcast partners around the world, we are giving this the same degree of priority. We assure anyone impacted that they will be able to watch the first episode of Season 7 either On Demand or via one of our encore screenings throughout the week. We will continue to communicate with affected customers to ensure they are fully informed,” he said.
Foxtel also took a similar tack on Twitter, hinting that the problems had been “caused by tech glitches” in the episode which had been supplied by HBO.
#GoT S7 Ep1has caused tech glitches around the world. You will be able to watch screenings throughout the week. https://t.co/JMFi1UQDfO pic.twitter.com/nhr8BxEm9I
— Foxtel (@Foxtel) July 17, 2017
Tim Burrowes founded Mumbrella in 2008. He worked on Mumbrella until 2021. At various points he was editor, content director and editor-at-large.
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I’m gonna call bullshit, I’m in the states and streamed it on HBO NOW absolutely fine. Not a single one of my friends had any trouble streaming, so unless NYC had a magic servers that didn’t experience this “Global Meltdown”, Foxtel is trying to shift the blame because people in Australia can’t pull reports of global stream figures.
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You are a sample of 1 Bob, and your friends a sample of a few. It’s like assuming that everyone can easily run a half marathon just because you and a few mates can.
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I have a lot of friends in the states. Not one of them has said they’ve had a problem.
Also, there has been no mention of it on reddit, or any other global forum. You’d think it would warrant a mention.
Foxtel see shifting the blame, and what’s sad is people will believe them.
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Foxtel say that illegal downloads of GOT must stop
Foxtel can’t let its users access GOT legally.
well done Foxtel.
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Foxtel has the worst customer experience of any major Australian brand. This latest incident shows how out of touch the high profile execs running it are when they believe a refreshed brand is somehow beneficial to a failing business. I vaguely remember a Foxtel CEO saying they were a tech company when rolling out IQ3..and now this.
While these high profile execs were proudly spending millions on a new brand and advertising campaign (not to mention the associated costs of rolling out a new look), they could have been spending money on ;
1 – Upgrading the rapidly ageing infrastructure and technology platform
2 – Redesigning the suite of apps – all of which have 1.5 star reviews
3 – Implementing Self-Service features on the Foxtel website
4 – Improving wait times on 131 999
5 – Investing in original content instead of reruns.
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http://www.hollywoodreporter.c.....te-1021611
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Hilarious trying to deflect the issue as a global problem. The feed comes in via satellite and then is played out. Seems like some load testing, especially around registration and login, didn’t take place.
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I couldn’t even get on to the Foxtel website last night to sign up to F-you Now – just a spinning wheel of death….
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Technically, reading that media release, Foxtel are using sleight of hand to say “bad things also happened OS”, because the next sentence clearly accepts responsibility for the local failure.
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The show sucks anyway, overrated baloney
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If only there was a site somewhere that could stream the episode without any technical issues whatsoever…
If pirates can get technology right, surely Foxtel can
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And I thought it was bad when you used to buy a DVD and sit through those insufferable and unskippable “You wouldn’t steal a handbag” anti-piracy warnings the pirates themselves had the good grace to cut out of the bootlegged versions.
When a paying customer has a second-rate experience, no one can be surprised they turn to the bootleggers.
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YouTube, Apple, surely it is only a matter of time before content producers offer their content to a variety of platforms. This should result in: Content producers making more money. Users getting content at a cheaper price. Win, win.
Lets cut out the greedy middle man and utilise platforms that rock. YouTube rocks. Apple TV. Amazon? C’mon world – wake up! Oh and apply this to sport to please!
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There were actually at least two different events here, and it’s important not to conflate them:
– HBO had some capacity issues with their own service in some regions, which they resolved;
– Foxtel had some capacity issues (looked to be streaming, auth, and probably most of whatever back-end they have for the app), which they resolved.
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I agree 100%.
Foxtel Executives lied through their teeth making excuses when IQ3 was launched, and proved to be a technical failure/disaster by all who ordered one. I did, and immediately went back to the reliable IQ2.
No wonder people pirate programs like GOT !
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