Netflix might soon let Android users listen to shows, movies even when screen is off
This new feature will allow users to completely minimize the Netflix app but at the same time it will continue to play the audio
Netflix has been trying to add to features to its platform in order to compete with other OTT apps that are rising in popularity. One such feature might make its way to Netflix app on Android devices. The company is testing a new feature that will allow the user to keep listening to audio of a particular show or movie even while the screen has been turned off.
The new feature has been spotted by XDA Developers hidden in an APK build of the application with version no. 7.79.1. While there’s no functionality that has been added to the app in this regard, one of the strings in the APK mentions that “Save your data by turning off the video and listening to your favorite shows." Another follow up string states, “The video is off, but you can continue listening to your show while you are busy doing other things."
This clearly shows that Netflix is at least testing such a feature. This new feature will allow users to completely minimize the Netflix app but at the same time it will continue to play the audio. In the process, the app will not only maintain continuity for the user by playing it in audio format but this will also reduce data usage substantially since there will be no need to steam the video.
While this feature is being tested, we can’t be sure if the company will want to execute this new feature in a stable build. Currently, the Netflix application on Android allows users to multitask on the phone while watching a show or movie by using the picture in picture (PiP) mode.
Recently Netflix announced that they will be conducting a StreamFest in India to encourage more users to take up Netflix subscription. Under this new fest, Netflix will allow all people to watch their content for a period of two days. The main thing that differentiates this scheme from the 30 day free trial period is that the user will not even have to put in thier payment details to access this free content.
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