CDN

technology

Content Delivery Network — infrastructure for delivering streaming video globally.

Explanation

A CDN (Content Delivery Network) is a geographically distributed network of servers that delivers video content to users from the server closest to them. Netflix operates its own CDN called Open Connect, while other services use commercial CDNs like Akamai, Cloudflare, or AWS CloudFront. CDNs reduce latency and buffering.

Related Terms

LatencyThe delay between a request...BufferingTemporary pause in playback while...Adaptive Bitrate (ABR)Technology that automatically adjusts video...TranscodingConverting video files into multiple...

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Last updated: March 2026