Last checked at 
(Writes through with Disney+ launch, analyst, carriers)
By Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS, March 20 (Reuters) - YouTube will sacrifice
streaming quality in the EU to help avert internet gridlock as
tens of millions of Europeans, confined by the coronavirus
outbreak, switch to working from home.
Alphabet Inc's YouTube is the second online video
company after Netflix to respond to a call by the
European Union industry chief Thierry Breton to cut picture
quality to prevent overload.
While mobile networks are coping so far they could come
under increased pressure as lockdowns to slow the pandemic
become stricter and broader.
Streaming video can account for 60% or more of traffic on
fixed and mobile networks and the planned March 24 launch of
Disney+ in Britain, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy,
Spain, Austria and Switzerland could create a new pain point.
Carriers have been told by the EU not to prioritise traffic
as this would violate its net neutrality rules.
"We are making a commitment to temporarily switch all
traffic in the EU to standard definition by default," YouTube
said in a statement after Breton spoke to Alphabet CEO Sundar
Pichai and YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki.
A spokesman said the decision includes Britain, which is
leaving the EU, and will initially be for 30 days.
"I warmly welcome the initiative that Google has taken to
preserve the smooth functioning of the internet during the
COVID19 crisis," Breton said in a statement.
Disney, which has 28.6 million users, had no immediate
comment. It is already sending out teasers for a launch that
will feature the opening two episodes of 'The Mandalorian' and
the final season of 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars'.
Experts warn that reducing streaming rates may only give
temporary relief and the dilemma of whether to discriminate
between essential and non-essential traffic will resurface.
"In an ideal world, network operators would obviously
upgrade their infrastructure and invest," said Eric Brookman,
chief technology officer of Extreme Networks, a U.S.
network management company.
"In the short term, what network operators could do to
reduce the pressure on their networks and ensure connectivity
for all is to deprioritise non-essential traffic."
DATA SPIKE
Telecoms providers from Vodafone to Deutsche Telekom
have reported a spike in data traffic, forcing Breton
to issue his pre-emptive call.
He wants networks to be able to run essential services such
as healthcare and online learning for house-bound children
during the coronavirus outbreak.
Netflix said it would reduce bit rates, which determine the
quality and size of its audio and video files, across all its
streams in Europe for 30 days, in effect cutting its traffic on
European networks by around 25%.
In France, Orange's networks should be able to
withstand a surge in usage due to a national lockdown, CEO
Stephane Richard said, adding that the use of messaging apps
like WhatsApp had increased fivefold.
Richard said Orange was in touch with France's telecoms
regulator in case it saw a need later to limit access to
entertainment sites to free up network space for emergency calls
or other priorities.
In Austria, which has imposed regional lockdowns in areas
hardest hit by the coronavirus, Drei Austria said it was seeing
a 50% increase in voice telephony and 15% in peak data loads.
Drei, a unit of Hutchison, welcomed the moves by
Netflix and YouTube. While it had not yet made use of traffic
management measures, it said it would keep that option open.
"We hope that Disney, like Netflix & YouTube, will also
reduce its transmission quality, at least during the crisis,"
Drei told Reuters.
Not all networks are stretched, with Dutch cable operator
VodafoneZiggo saying it had ample capacity and was offering its
paid film channel, plus a kids film and a comedy channel, for
free.
(Additional reporting by Sarah White, Kirsti Knolle, Nadine
Schimroszik and Toby Sterling
Writing by Douglas Busvine;)
