Netflix Launches Offline Viewing

Ever wanted to catch an episode of Orange is New Black on the Luas but couldn’t because of your data plan? Well rejoice, because Netflix have announced that you will be able to download films and TV shows for offline watching to IOS and Android devices.

In a press release issued today, the company announced the much-anticipated feature for a limited amount of its content. This feature comes free with a Netflix membership.

While many movies and TV shows are not available to download right now — including Gilmore Girls and Friends — hit shows like Stranger Things, Orange is the New Black and Narcos are available to download from the get-go.

It’s super easy to download a film or television episode to watch on the go; just update Netflix to the most recent version and hit the download button.

There will however be a limit to how many downloaded episodes and films you can store at one time due to licensing issues. The “My Downloads” page on Netflix will also tell you how much time you have (like 48 or 72 hours) to watch the title.

The streaming giant must now focus on securing licenses and rights to ensure that this new feature gets off the ground running. With increased competition from Amazon Prime, pressure is mounting on the company to defend its dominance of the video-streaming market.

The company had previously refused to allow downloading of their content. Instead they argued that improved wireless connectivity was more important to allow users to access Netflix when on-the-move. But as Amazon Prime has allowed offline downloads on IOS and Android for over a year, offline downloads became a feature which Netflix could no longer ignore. Next time your data runs out, don’t fear, just hit that download button.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *