“Unwatchable!” Netflix hit with class-action lawsuit — over streaming debacle in Mike Tyson’s return

Netflix sued over 'unwatchable' streams for Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight at the Dallas Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium this past weekend.

“Unwatchable!” Netflix hit with class-action lawsuit — over streaming debacle in Mike Tyson’s return

Netflix sued for 'unwatchable' streams for Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight (Source: IMAGO/X)

The Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson boxing event last Friday night (15 November) at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, made sporting history. It was a pro fight straying from the blend with eight, 2-minute rounds and heavy gloves. It was quite a debacle with the ‘Problem Child’ straying from the norm and taking on a 58-year-old. But the Netflix fight itself faced technical issues on its own, not just moral ones.

The event drew over 72,000 fans for a whopping $18 million gate and 65 million concurrent streams. The YouTuber-turned-prizefighter even touted some not-so-fair stream records for the craze. But 108 million live global viewers on Netflix, probably with streamers around the world were frozen, blacked out, or had “unwatchable” feeds. In response, Florida man Ronald “Blue” Denton filed a class-action lawsuit. TMZSports reported the matter first.

The Paul and Tyson collision saw the former bag a lopsided win (80-72, 79-73, 79-73) in the Netflix special event. Katie Taylor defeated Amanda Serrano via decision (95-94, 95-94, 95-94) – for Taylor’s IBF, WBA, WBC, and WBO women’s super lightweight straps. While full of controversy, it did draw a lot of eyes for both. But streaming issues plagued the matter a lot.

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On the plus side, some selct few viewers didn’t have to witness this doozy! Some are yet panning it a success. Netflix will even stream two NFL grinds this late season. Others though, are providing traction to the lawsuit. On the other hand, they also feel that this was one of the “greatest cons” of all time.

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The Great Netflix controversy of the ’24

Was Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul even a real fight at all? The fact that Tyson, 58, was fighting a 31-year-old Youtuber boxer was quite enough. It was quite a dipdown for the once-WBA, WBC, and IBF beltholder and consensus legend. Then came the fact of how it happened.

Netflix faces backlash over Mike Tyson return
Netflix faces backlash over Mike Tyson return (Source: X/YT)

Along with the streaming issues, fans were left feeling “cheated” by the eight-round headliner. At times it resembled a glorified sparring match. Paul, 27, won the decision with a jab and a jive and said he didn’t want to hurt him. As a result, the conspiracy theorists went at it. Here’s what three-time Super Bowl champion Michael Irvin had to say:

They had no intentions to really scrap at all, …If you look through that, I didn’t see one patented uppercut by Mike Tyson. What if Mike Tyson hit him with an uppercut? Then I heard some people talking about they put that in the contract. He couldn’t body and then uppercut. Like – how can you put that in a fight contract? You got all these people out here, and he couldn’t body him and do that patented uppercut.

Michael Irvin said (? It Is What It Is/YouTube)

Irvin wasn’t the only one with a blunt assessment or a theory as to how and why the Netflix fight even happened. Many have had similar concerns or their own viral take. Even the streaming issues got their own responses. Here’s a top few:

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Tyson’s return held quite the value and was one of the best selling points of this. But poor conditions overshadowed that and an incredible co-headliner. Safe to say, the world wasn’t kind to the Netflix buffering troubles. “Iron” Mike is an ‘earshot’ away from an epic trilogy after a recent call-up from a rival. Here’s hoping that streams more peacefully than this one.

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