- Streaming, summer’s primary victim: 31.4% of users point to video platforms as those most affected by network instability.
- Technical glitches lead nearly three in ten Spaniards (27.8%) to believe their neighbors are stealing their internet.
Madrid – In the height of summer, home networks face maximum pressure as remote work, digital leisure, and live content consumption overlap. Yet, the quality of these everyday digital experiences depends heavily on the efficient interconnection of networks that exchange data across the Internet, far beyond home broadband. When these connections lag, failures turn daily routines into a constant source of frustration. According to a study by Netquest for DE-CIX, this lack of connection stability has given rise to an increasingly common phenomenon in Spain: the so-called ‘digital exile.’
When staying connected means leaving home
In a context where seamless connectivity is taken for granted, encountering an unstable network during holidays triggers drastic responses. The study reveals that 32% of Spaniards have had to leave their primary or holiday residence to seek a more reliable connection in cafes, commercial establishments, or other homes, or switch to mobile data to stay online.
Within this group, 27.5% report having resorted to this “exile” in occasional emergency situations when unable to handle remote work tasks, enjoy leisure time, or complete key errands. Meanwhile, for 4.5% of respondents, this solution is not an isolated incident but a regular occurrence linked to recurring connectivity issues at home
Summer streaming: emotional disruption at key moments
Summer holidays are traditionally the time of year reserved for catching up on series, watching movies, or following live sports events. However, 31.4% of Spaniards specifically pinpoint streaming (platforms like Netflix, YouTube, or Twitch) as one of the services suffering most from network interruptions and slow speeds.
The impact of these interruptions directly affects mood during time off:
- Anxiety and nervousness: 13.6% of users admit to experiencing distress and nervousness when the screen freezes at a key moment in a broadcast.
- Resignation: 26.2% react with resignation, stating they simply sigh and wait for the content to reload.
- Indifference and distraction: 24.1% choose to immediately divert their attention to their mobile phone instead.
- Impatience and anger: Facing continuous outages, 35.1% of users try to fix the technical issue immediately, while 11.1% lose their patience and openly express anger.
Routine disruption and neighborly suspicion
Reliance on home networks is so high that signal drops directly impact daily living. Over 71% of respondents state that an internet outage significantly alters their daily routine.
Connection instability can also lead to misplaced suspicion: 27.8% of Spaniards admit that when experiencing slow speeds, they have suspected a neighbor was ‘stealing’ their Wi-Fi signal, even though such slowdowns are typically tied to general network performance rather than unauthorized access.
“The findings show that, whether we are working or enjoying a break, a stable and reliable Internet connection is essential to our daily lives” says Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX. “Internet quality is about much more than speed. What ultimately determines the user experience is how efficiently networks exchange data, ensuring the reliability and responsiveness that modern digital life depends on.”
Overall, the DE-CIX study suggests that, particularly during peak consumption periods like summer, the quality of Internet connectivity can no longer be measured solely in subscribed megabytes or gigabytes, but in the consistency and reliability of a network capable of delivering uninterrupted performance when needed most.
Methodology
The representative online survey was conducted in May 2026 by Netquest on behalf of DE-CIX among 1,504 respondents across Spain, with a margin of error of ±2.5%. The sample is representative of the Spanish population.
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