Juli Clover, MacRumors:
The Netflix app for iPhone and iPad no longer appears to support AirPlay, based on an updated support document found on the Netflix website.
According to Netflix, AirPlay is no longer supported on iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch due to “technical limitations.” There are no details from Netflix on what those technical limitations might be.
As to why, this from Netflix:
“We want to make sure our members have a great Netflix experience on any device they use. With AirPlay support rolling out to third-party devices, there isn’t a way for us to distinguish between devices (what is an Apple TV vs. what isn’t) or certify these experiences. Therefore, we have decided to discontinue Netflix AirPlay support to ensure our standard of quality for viewing is being met. Members can continue to access Netflix on the built-in app across Apple TV and other devices.”
And this, from Netflix’s official support page (the page is titled “How do I use my mobile device to watch Netflix on my TV?”):
Airplay is no longer supported for use with Netflix due to technical limitations.
Hard to suss out the true reasoning behind this decision. Is this really about standard of quality?
If so, seems like Apple’s AirPlay team could work out some sort of whitelist for devices that handle AirPlay and Netflix well enough. After all, if a TV won’t support Netflix well enough, it likely won’t support AirPlay well enough either.
This isn’t about quality, it’s about Netflix’s ability to track what you’re watching across devices.
“AirPlay 2 doesn’t have digital identifiers to let Netflix tell those TVs apart — and so the company can’t certify its users are getting the best Netflix experience when casting to those new sets.
So now, it’s throwing out the baby with the bathwater and pulling the plug on AirPlay, period. “We can’t distinguish which device is which, we can’t actually certify the devices… so we’ve had to just shut down support for it,” a Netflix spokesperson says.”
https://www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2019/4/6/18298146/netflix-confirms-it-yanked-airplay-support-wont-let-you-beam-shows-to-apple-tvs-anymore
I’m confused there. If you have Apple TV why would you Airplay Netflix to it…? Use the Apple TV Netflix app!
Sure, there are edge cases… you go to a friend’s house, they have an Apple TV but don’t have Netflix and you want to watch a Netflix thing. Same for the new builtin stuff that Apple is launching – if it’s there, there’s also a Netflix app so why would anyone Airplay to the device??
It has nothing to do with DRM. But Netflix would like to be able to capture device IDs so they can track what devices their content is played back on. AirPlay 2 won’t give them that data. This is about Netflix wanting data and using a false technical excuse as a defense.
Source: https://twitter.com/film_girl/status/1114688818823585793
I think the obvious question is, Why does it matter for them to know what device the content is being streamed to?
And my feeling is they want to know for tracking purposes. Why does it matter if I’m streaming to an AppleTV vs a Vizio tv vs something else? I’m sending a stream of video to the device, why does it matter what device it’s going to. The thing that matters is the amount of bandwidth I have available so the proper quality shows.
Between price hikes, series cancellations (Travellers, Marvel) and this the question is no longer if I want to cancel my subscription… it’s now whether I cancel my after Jessica Jones or cancel now and resubscribe for a month just for Jessica Jones.
(And that’s not even counting the series I’ll miss but understand: sense8 and The Good Cop, plus the inexplicable grab and renewal of the train wreck that Designated Surviver has become. But maybe they can refocus it and make it good again.)
It’s not to Apple TV, it’s to a TV (say Vizio) that supports AirPlay.
I canceled my Netflix subscriptions 5 years ago and have never looked back. Not only are they the Wal-Mart bargain bin of streaming services, they continue to not support Apple products like the TV app, PIP, and AppleTV nav API.
data greed.
devices which support AirPlay but don’t have a netflix app.
But Vizio etc all have built in Netflix apps…. I see what @mdelvecchio is saying below, that there might be some devices that support Airplay but don’t have a Netflix app (and maybe that’s your thought here too) but realistically how many of those exist? All the smart TVs getting Airplay 2 have Netflix apps I’d imagine.