Netflix’s payments to Comcast produce fastest video-streaming speeds in past 17 months

SAN FRANCISCO – Netflix’s videos are streaming through Comcast’s Internet service at their highest speeds in the past 17 months now that Netflix is paying for a more direct connection to Comcast’s network.

Data released Monday by Netflix Inc. showed Comcast delivered its video at an average rate of 2.5 megabits per second during March. That was a 66 per cent increase from a recent low of 1.51 megabits per second in January.

The March performance also topped the previous monthly high of 2.17 megabits per second that Netflix had recorded on Comcast since the video service began tracking the streaming speeds of Internet service providers in November 2012.

The dramatic upswing came in the first full month after Netflix agreed in mid-February to pay Comcast Corp. an undisclosed amount for better access.