Netflix users are losing support for Google Cast, a useful mobile feature on the app for Android that allows them to watch content on the big screen. The casting option has been available for many years
but users have now seen the feature not listed and now the platform has seemingly confirmed its demise without exactly telling us why it did.
A new report has shared some of the details about Netflix making this call and how it might be related to its use among millions.
The Cast-Away Story
As mentioned by The Verge in a report, casting has gone out of fashion for a while, and only around 10 percent of Android users even rely on the feature. Some might say that is still a big chunk of the Android phone market but even then Netflix probably feels its efforts are more suited for other recent features.
And it does make sense in many ways because Netflix says if your TV streaming device or TV has a remote then you can use the native Netflix app running on them instead of casting from the mobile. The change is also being observed with the newer TVs and streaming devices which means the older Chromecast devices are still working but that could be linked to the lack of updates and possible security risks posed by them and their support should be cut off soon.
Casting means you can take the regular mobile plan from Netflix and use that to stream on the TV without paying for the higher tier plan.
Removing the support gives the company an ideal win-win situation where people either pay up or just use the plan on their single device. Having said that, the ad-based plan available in select regions never had the casting support so nothing changes for those users.
So when you connect the dots, you get the reason why Netflix killed the feature and it is unlikely that many will be crying over its omission.
