Understanding roughly how streaming works can make troubleshooting much less mysterious.
Encoding
Video is compressed ("encoded") into a stream of small data chunks. More compression means smaller file sizes but more processing work; higher bitrates mean better quality but more bandwidth required.
Delivery
Those chunks travel from a server, through a content delivery network with servers positioned close to you geographically, to your device's player app. Our Channels page lists what's delivered this way.
Playback
Your player app downloads a few seconds ahead of what you're watching — this small buffer is what absorbs brief network hiccups without you noticing.
Why this matters
When that buffer runs dry faster than it refills — because of a slow connection or network congestion — you see the loading spinner. Nearly every buffering issue traces back to that one dynamic. Our troubleshooting checklist works through the fixes in order.
Curious how this compares to traditional broadcast? Read IPTV vs traditional cable. Wondering if a VPN affects any of this? See do you need a VPN for IPTV.