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NetflixPatent applicationNetworks & wirelessInterest 4/10

Netflix patents method to serve live video from cache during traffic spikes

Patent drawing
Patent drawing from the official filing.

Netflix describes a system for handling sudden surges in demand for live video content. When a user requests a piece of a live stream, the system pulls the video segment from a local cache rather than the main server, using a stored reference to find the correct data.

Why it mattersThis is a standard engineering technique to prevent servers from crashing during popular live events, ensuring smoother playback for viewers.

In the filing’s own words

One embodiment of a method for responding to requests for media content includes receiving a first request from a first client for at least one segment of a media content item, retrieving, from a datastore, a reference to each segment included in the at least one segment, retrieving, from a cache, the at least one segment of the media content item based on the reference to each segment included in the at least one segment, and transmitting the at least one segment of the media content item to the first client.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising: receiving, from a client, a request for at least one segment of a media content item; retrieving the at least one segment from a cache; and providing the at least one segment to the client.

Facts

Company
Netflix (NETFLIX, INC.)
Official title
TECHNIQUES FOR TRAFFIC SURGE PROTECTION OF LIVE ORIGIN SERVER
Publication number
US20260303887A1
Application number
19701631
Filed
Jun 8, 2026
Published
Oct 1, 2026
Inventors
2
Claims
20

Classified under

H04N 21/2393 Electricity & electronicsH04N 21/2183 Electricity & electronicsH04N 21/222 Electricity & electronicsH04N 21/23106 Electricity & electronics
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.