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The internet had its own seasonal wardrobe in 2025. Sometimes it wore a gaming headset, while at other points it was tangled in router cables. Across 10,214 outage reports published on Status Is Down during the year, two industries repeatedly competed for the top spot.
Telecommunications and internet services generated the most reports overall, accounting for 2,390 entries. Puzzles and video games followed with 2,084. However, their positions changed with the seasons, and the gap between them ranged from a comfortable lead to an almost photo finish.
For this analysis, winter covers January, February, and December. Spring includes March through May, summer runs from June through August, and fall covers September through November.
Winter: Gaming Took the Controller
Puzzles and video games led the winter season with 471 outage reports, narrowly ahead of telecommunications and internet services at 424.
Winter produced 2,017 reports in total, meaning gaming-related services accounted for 23.4% of the season’s activity. Telecommunications represented 21%, leaving just 47 reports between the two industries.
The winter result was not consistent across all three months. Telecommunications led January with 95 reports, compared with 69 for puzzles and video games. Gaming moved ahead in February with 157 reports and widened its advantage in December, when it generated 245 reports against telecommunications’ 200.
Banking and finance placed a distant third for the season with 158 reports. Entertainment and video streaming followed with 85, while gaming platforms and consoles recorded 74.
Winter was the only season in which puzzles and video games finished ahead of telecommunications overall. It may have been cold outside, but plenty of services still found a way to freeze.
Spring: Telecommunications Regained the Lead
Telecommunications and internet services returned to first place during spring, recording 497 outage reports across March, April, and May.
Puzzles and video games finished second with 392 reports, creating a gap of 105. Banking and finance remained third with 165.
Telecommunications led in every spring month. It recorded 173 reports in March, 161 in April, and 163 in May. Gaming-related reports remained steady behind it, ranging from 120 to 138 per month.
Spring generated 2,139 reports altogether. Telecommunications accounted for 23.2% of them, while puzzles and video games contributed 18.3%.
Social media and networking also became more prominent, rising from 67 reports in winter to 121 in spring. Generative AI chatbots and assistants increased from 54 to 82, although neither category came close to challenging the season’s two leaders.
The season may have brought new growth, but telecommunications had already planted itself firmly at the top.
Summer: Connectivity Pulled Away
Summer recorded 3,046 outage reports, making it the busiest season of 2025. Telecommunications and internet services dominated with 842 reports, the highest seasonal total achieved by any industry during the year.
Puzzles and video games remained second with 634 reports. The difference of 208 was the widest gap between the leading two categories in any season.
Telecommunications led all three summer months. It generated 255 reports in June, climbed to 341 in July, and recorded another 246 in August. Puzzles and video games followed with 182, 250, and 202 respectively.
July was particularly active, producing 1,169 reports across all industries. It was the busiest month in the dataset and helped lift the summer total well above spring’s 2,139.
Banking and finance ranked third in summer with 223 reports. Social media and networking recorded 122, while entertainment and video streaming generated 111.
Telecommunications represented 27.6% of all summer reports, its largest seasonal share of the year. The internet may have been heating up, but connections were not always keeping their cool.
Fall: The Race Tightened Again
Telecommunications held onto first place in fall, but puzzles and video games closed the gap considerably.
Across September, October, and November, telecommunications generated 627 reports. Puzzles and video games recorded 587, leaving only 40 reports between them. That was the closest seasonal contest of the year.
The monthly lead also changed hands. Telecommunications topped September with 208 reports against gaming’s 175. Puzzles and video games then edged ahead in October by just two reports, recording 217 compared with 215. Telecommunications reclaimed first place in November with 204 reports, while gaming finished close behind with 195.
Fall produced 3,012 reports overall, only 34 fewer than summer. Telecommunications represented 20.8% of the season’s total, its smallest leading share of the year.
Banking and finance recorded its highest seasonal figure in fall, reaching 244 reports. Entertainment and video streaming also climbed to 172, up from 111 in summer. Gaming platforms and consoles reached 119, while food and grocery delivery rose to 100.
The internet’s two dominant industries ended the year much as they had started it, locked in a close contest. Telecommunications won three seasons, gaming claimed one, and neither gave the other much time to log off.
This analysis covers 10,214 Status Is Down forum topics published from January 1 through December 31, 2025. Each topic represents a reported outage or downtime event and does not necessarily indicate a confirmed service-wide incident or the number of users affected.
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