What is the reason for occasional views-spikes on certain platforms?

It is not uncommon that in certain regions or for certain devices there are spikes in view counts. Aside from the possibility that specific content reaches certain virality and is shared by users, content can be promoted to large groups of people during events.

In addition hardware manufacturers for smart phones, ConnectedTV devices or SmartTVs, can make changes to their operating system which can influence view counts. It is not uncommon that an OS version update of a certain device changes how it reports view counts, how their device buffers/preloads content, or how it connects and re-connects devices to CDNs, thus contributing to viewing numbers and in some cases even bandwidth usage. This can also change in favor of publishers.

Whether viral sharing, viewer behavior, their internet connection or device - all of these are factors which can influence viewing numbers, but are outside of the realm of control for both publishers and online video platforms.