This is the case for all events broadcast live and Euro 2024 football is no exception. There is a certain delay (up to two minutes!) in the images depending on the Source: RTBF Auvio, Proximus Pickx, VOO, Orange, Base TV, etc.
To put it another way, if you watch the same match, on the same channel, on the Auvio mobile application or via the Proximus decoder, the goals will not fall at the same time. In question: the “buffer”, this buffer memory which stores a certain quota of images to avoid interruptions in the flow and guarantee fluidity.
This safety margin differs from one operator to another, to the point of creating a significant discrepancy. It also differs between TV decoders and so-called OTT (over the top) applications, which must be even more careful and store more images in the “buffer”.
For what ? The Internet connection associated with the TV decoder is configured to reserve a comfortable and stable bandwidth for it. Conversely, the OTT application is used on any Internet connection, fixed or mobile, and there is no guarantee of bandwidth. Hence the need to rely on a much more generous buffer memory.
“We have to adapt the way we broadcast”
The phenomenon is therefore also observed within the same operator, between the Proximus Pickx decoder and the Proximus Pickx application for example.
“It’s about integrating more security and quality correction on OTT because the decoders are in what we call a controlled network where we can guarantee the available bandwidth,” Proximus explained to us in 2022. “But for streaming on the open internet (which is the case for applications and the web), we must adapt the way we broadcast and buffer the video so that it is fluid in all cases. This is why the difference can be as much as 30 to 40 seconds. ”
