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Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

macrumors.com

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Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#61

Post by bri3d »

troupo wrote: post #10

I've worked in streaming. If you see a feature pulled, or announced and delayed, or announced and never shipped, 99.99999% of the time it's due to licensing. Every single permutation of any action that a user may find beneficial is covered by a different license with a different cost. Oh. And ads. There's another can of worms if you need to serve ads. In this case it could be that Netflix is an asshole. Or could be t…

I suspect this too; between licensing and ads I bet there's a "screen type" (mobile vs. fixed/TV) that needs to be "correct" for some contract reason, and casting is skewing their numbers enough that someone called them on it.

Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#62

Post by bsimpson »

mingus88 wrote: post #25
troupo wrote: post #10

I've worked in streaming. If you see a feature pulled, or announced and delayed, or announced and never shipped, 99.99999% of the time it's due to licensing. Every single permutation of any action that a user may find beneficial is covered by a different license with a different cost. Oh. And ads. There's another can of worms if you need to serve ads. In this case it could be that Netflix is an asshole. Or could be t…

I’m really leaning towards them being an asshole in this specific case. Chromecast works in my EV for every other streaming app, so the licensing seems to be a solved problem for them. Netflix, however, never worked and my EV manufacturer had to release a support page specifically for Netflix not working. I suspect this is just more account security. I remember paying $20/mo for a premium plan with a set number of sc…

Same. First, I kept my idle account for the recommendations. Then, I kept my idle account because my family used it (why Netflix ENCOURAGED when they added profiles).

Then, some new, money-grubbing PM rolled in and decided to lock my parents out of my account. Okay, byebye Netflix! You jacked the price too high anyway.

Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#63

Post by lesuorac »

nemomarx wrote: post #57
nine_k wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry, but it's CUS-TO-MERS. They buy stuff that can only be controlled via an app talking to the cloud. They buy stuff that cannot be repaired. They buy stuff that openly lies about its specs, for an "unbelievably good price". The customers go for the cheapest, all else be damned. Education in general, and about critical thinking in particular, could help.

Customers would buy contaminated food if it was cheaper, too. There's value in having a floor on quality and design for products to avoid races to the bottom?

Not just would, DID!

And they got so fed up with eating food that make them sick that we passed the Food and Drug Act!

You can vote with both your wallet and _you actual vote_.

Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#64

Post by MichaelZuo »

paxys wrote: post #53

I remember the time when smart homes used to feature in sci-fi literature and concept videos. Being able to walk around your house while having everything seamlessly synced and tailored to your preferences was clearly the future. TV, movies and music automatically playing in whatever room your enter. Files and all other data seamlessly synced between all your devices. Not having to think about how to make the tech wo…

Any vision of the future that doesn’t include realistic incentives of human beings won’t happen.

Offering such a flexible smart home requires a huge amount of coordination work, customer support, and just taking the blame sometimes for the inevitable bugs.

Yeah competent companies are willing to take on all that, if you pay them a lot, which is why high end smart homes are flourishing.

Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#65

Post by gnarlouse »

bryanlarsen wrote: post #39
gnarlouse wrote: post #19

Netflix is fucking its business up by trying to be a studio IMO. The service was perfect when they were a streaming platform. The studio arm's script selection and production quality makes me want to gauge my eyes out. When you pay an arm and a leg every month for Netflix, you're funding a studio that pumps out the equivalent of screeching goblin sounds. Makes no sense.

Did they have a choice? In the beginning the studios gave them access to their catalog for cheap. The studios understandably stopped doing that.

This is a good point, I hadn't considered that.

Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#66

Post by tsunamifury »

kennethrc wrote: post #60
tsunamifury wrote: post #27

Netflix’s seemingly baffling decisions all make sense when you realize one thing: Netflix sees no more technological future or market opportunity for themselves that will increase profits, so reduction of features and up charging are the only strategies. It’s a testiment to the blindness and stupidity of their workers and leadership that in the era of the most cutting edge breakthroughs in video, Netflix believes the…

> in the era of the most cutting edge breakthroughs in video ... and what are those?

Are you living under a rock?

You can do multi scene coherent video generation with off the shelf mobile apps right now.

We are living in an era where extending nostalgic IP is just a few steps away. It may take time but it will start with cartoons and go from there.

Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#67

Post by nmcfarl »

This is going to be painful for people in a way which I haven’t seen discussed here yet.

A year ago I went on vacation with my family, and the kids wanted to watch Netflix on VRBO‘s TV and so I logged in to my account on the tv. And of course I forgot to log it out when I left - so, predictably, the next people decided they hated my taste and went through and deleted all my likes and dislikes, and rated I swear 100 teen romances. I somehow got my account logged out of that TV, but the account was trashed and unrepairable so I lost about a decades worth of history and started a new one.

Afterwards, I thought I should’ve just cast from the kids iPad. And now that won’t be possible.

Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#68

Post by mort96 »

oooyay wrote: post #50
lunias wrote: post #22

I don't understand Netflix's decision, but I'm long past caring about things like this. I've had PCs hooked up to all of my televisions for the past 15+ years because of how limiting and frustrating using any other device to play media from can be.

What OS do you run? I was thinking of doing this with SteamOS.

If it's going to be primarily a gaming device then that makes sense, but if not, what do you gain from SteamOS? And why do you want Steam to start on boot?

I use Fedora for this purpose, used to use Debian. You really just need a system with a web browser, file browser, media player and torrent client, and some way to remote control the computer from the couch (ideally from a phone).

Sadly, I don't know of any nice off the shelf solution for that last part. KDE Connect is an option but it kinda sucks. I've always had my own Remote Desktop web interface service type thing running on the machine (though Wayland has kinda thrown a wrench into that for now...)

Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#69

Post by nzach »

lunias wrote: post #22

I don't understand Netflix's decision, but I'm long past caring about things like this. I've had PCs hooked up to all of my televisions for the past 15+ years because of how limiting and frustrating using any other device to play media from can be.

> The change was first spotted by users on Reddit and confirmed in an updated Netflix support page (via Android Authority), which now states that the streaming service no longer supports casting from mobile devices to most TVs and TV-streaming devices. Users are instead directed to use the remote that came with their TV hardware and use its native Netflix app.

My guess is that adblock became too easy on smartphones, so by forcing people use the app on the TV it makes harder for people to bypass the ads.

That's pure speculation, as I don't have any subscription from netflix. But I've used this method with the HBO app and it works 90% of the time, so I'm assuming netflix has the same issue.

Re: Netflix kills casting from its mobile app to most modern TVs

#70

Post by lunias »

oooyay wrote: post #50
lunias wrote: post #22

I don't understand Netflix's decision, but I'm long past caring about things like this. I've had PCs hooked up to all of my televisions for the past 15+ years because of how limiting and frustrating using any other device to play media from can be.

What OS do you run? I was thinking of doing this with SteamOS.

I used to use arch linux, but I've been using windows in recent times for simplicity and usability by non-technical people. Windows is starting to piss me off though, so I might move back to some linux distro in the near future.

I don't do any live TV / DVR stuff. Most of the time I just use the browser or VLC.

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