Tag Archives: llnw

Comcast, AT&T Not Always To Blame For Millennial Buffer Rage

Many millennials suffer from video buffer rage more frequently than road rage, says a survey by IneoQuest, a provider of quality monitoring and assurance services for Internet video companies. Fifty-one percent of the 1,000 consumers surveyed who watch streaming video have experienced “a state of uncontrollable fury or violent anger”  as a result of buffering problems, says IneoQuest. And more than one-third of those surveyed under age 35 have had meltdowns when video streaming stops. But the next time your Netflix ( NFLX ) movie or YouTube video streams inconsistently, don’t automatically  blame your Internet service provider such as Comcast ( CMCSA ), AT&T ( T ) or Verizon Communications ( VZ ), says Kurt Michel, senior marketing director at Mansfield, Mass.-based IneoQuest. The problem could be with the content itself and the server that is providing it;  the mobile device or PC; or there could be an issue with the CDN (content delivery network) that Internet video companies such as Netflix or Hulu use. CDN providers include Akamai Technologies ( AKAM ), Limelight Networks ( LLNW ) and Level 3 Communications ( LVLT ). According to IneoQuest’s study, in many cases viewers were not able to begin playing streaming content at all, with 27% of respondents claiming that buffering most often occurs before a video starts and 34% experiencing buffering in the first 15 seconds.  More than 40% of consumers say they will wait only 10 seconds or less before clicking out of a buffering video. Nearly a quarter of all consumers surveyed said buffering during live sporting events causes the most rage.

Akamai Says M&A, Stock Buyback Both Do-able

Akamai Technologies ( AKAM ) is sticking with its revenue target of $5 billion by 2020-21. At its investor day on Monday, the company said that it has enough cash to pursue stock repurchases as well as acquisitions. “We could do both — M&A or share buybacks,” said Akamai CFO Jim Benson. He said that Akamai has about $1.5 billion in cash. Akamai did not change Q1 guidance calling for profit in a range of 61 cents to 64 cents per share and revenue of $562 million at its midpoint, up 7% from $526.5 million a year earlier. Akamai’s 2015 revenue rose 12% to $2.2 billion. “Although Akamai expects a lower overall growth rate for 2016, management is maintaining its long-term revenue goal of $5 billion by 2020, which implies a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 18%,” said Jim Breen, a William Blair analyst, in a report. Cambridge, Mass.-based Akamai is the biggest provider of content delivery network services to media and entertainment companies. Akamai’s CDN technology speeds up e-commerce transactions, business software downloads and video streaming to mobile devices. Akamai has expanded into higher-margin cloud infrastructure services and security, aiming to offset price cuts in the CDN business that averages 15% to 20% a year. At the investor day in Boston, Akamai said that it expects to grow sales overseas as well as to corporate customers. “The media business was de-emphasized relative to last year and is beginning to be overshadowed by the performance and security businesses,” said Michael Bowen, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities, in a report. Akamai’s stock is up about 4% in 2016. It has an IBD Composite Rating of 59 out of a possible 99. Akamai competes with Limelight Networks ( LLNW ) and Level 3 Communications ( LVLT ) as well as Verizon Communications ( VZ ). Verizon carries a high Composite Rating of 98 and makes  IBD’s Big Cap 20 weekly screen of large-cap growth stocks.

Add Comcast To Akamai’s Growing Roster Of CDN Rivals

Add Comcast (CMCSA) to the growing number of companies that pose a worry for Akamai Technologies (AKAM), the biggest provider of content delivery network services. Akamai’s global CDN speeds up video streaming, e-commerce transactions and business software downloads over the Internet. Cambridge, Mass.-based Akamai already competes with Level 3 Communications (LVLT), Limelight Networks (LLNW) and Verizon Communications (VZ), which acquired