Popular services Netflix and WhatsApp are planning for an enterprise level partnership, under which Netflix will send content recommendation to its subscribers on WhatsApp. The feature is being tested with a few users in India.
This was first reported by Killer Features, and was later confirmed by Gadgets360 as well. Also the publication has shared a screenshot showing the upcoming integration.
As you can see in the screenshot, the new opt-in feature requires Netflix subscribers to have a WhatsApp account to enable notifications. In case they opt for "I'M IN" Netflix will send account messages and suggestion on what to watch to the registered WhatsApp number. It is not known what other solution will be shared, but we can expect Netflix to share details about upcoming TV shows/movies, timings and send reminders as well.
Netflix's partnership with WhatsApp leverages the latter's business platform that was introduced in September to monetize the instant messaging service. This is not first of the kind partnership. Earlier WhatsApp teamed up with BookMyShow and Goibibo for sending the confirmation of ticket on WhatsApp.
For WhatsApp India is the most important market, where it has over 200 million users as of February 2017, and the number likely to be doubled by the end of this year. In April WhatsApp affirmed that India will play a crucial role in boosting its business model.
Vodafone has teamed up with Netflix in India to exclusively offer its Vodafone Red customers, free Netflix subscription of up to one year on select RED postpaid monthly plans.
Postpaid customers with Rs. 1,299 or Rs. 1,699 plans will get two months Netflix subscription worth Rs. 1,000. Customers with RED Rs. 1,999 plan will get three months Netflix subscription worth Rs. 1,500, and Vodafone RED Rs. 2,999 users will get 12 months Netflix subscription worth Rs. 6,000 for free.
To claim the offer you need to:
- SMS Netflix to 199 from your Vodafone Number or visit offers.vodafone.com/in/netflix
- Enter your Vodafone number for RED Verification
- Enter the OTP your have received
- If you are using RED 1299 plan or above, you can activate your free Netflix subscription, otherwise you will get an option to upgrade to an eligible RED plan
The offer is available for both new and existing Vodafone Red postpaid users.
Netflix has blocked access to its Android app to all rooted/unlocked devices, so you won't be able to find Netflix on the Google Play Store going forward. But if the app is already installed on your rooted device, you will still be able to run it without any issue.
The popular streaming company has confirmed that the latest update (version 5.0) to Netflix app for Android will block devices that are not "Google-certified or have been altered" from accessing the service. This is because, Netflix now relies on Widevine digital rights management (DRM) from Google, meaning, the app will work only if the devices are certified by Google and have met all Android requirements. It looks like this step is taken as a measure to control privacy.
With our latest 5.0 release, we now fully rely on the Widevine DRM provided by Google; therefore, many devices that are not Google-certified or have been altered will no longer work with our latest app, and those users will no longer see the Netflix app in the Play Store.
Although access to the Netflix app on the Google Play store has been blocked to all rooted/unlocked Android devices, the app is still functioning normally if you had it installed before version 5.0.4 was released without any problem.
However, in case you're device is rooted and can't see Netflix app on the Play Store, you can download and install the app through an APK file, which can be found on third party website like APK mirror.
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Back in November, Netflix added one of the most requested feature to its Android and iOS apps — the ability to download movies and TV shows for offline viewing. Now the popular content streaming service is bringing this functionality to Windows 10 PC, tablet and mobile users.
Windows 10 users can now download select TV shows and movies from the Netflix app on Windows 10 for offline viewing. Popular TV shows like Stranger Things, The Crown, Narcos and more are available for download.
To download your favorite stuff, after opening the Netflix app for Windows 10, check for downloadable contents in the "Available for Download" menu, or look for the download icon next to a specific TV show or movie. After downloading your favorite movie or TV shows, you can find them on the "My Download" section of the app.
The offline viewing/download will come handy for Netflix users, especially in countries like India, where internet connectivity and speed remains an issue, and is not best suited for streaming videos.
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Popular video streaming service Netflix announced three major strategic partnerships in India with Vodafone to enable carrier billing and with Airtel and Videocon for Direct to Home (DTH) services.
Under the partnership (w/ Airtel & Videocon), the Netflix app will be integrated into Airtel and Videocon's set-top boxes, meaning users will be able to watch all the popular TV shows and movies on their TVs without the need of streaming devices like Chromecast, Apple TV or Smart TVs.
It's worth mentioning that Airtel DTH and Videocon dth users will have to be Netflix subscribers in-order to enjoy the services. Moreover, Airtel and Videocon set-top box will need to require an Ethernet or WiFi connection to connect to the internet and accessing a curated set off apps including Netflix.
Videocon is also said to be testing its new set-top boxes that will come pre-installed with Netflix app. It will also add a dedicated Netflix button on the remote control of its HD Smart Connect set-top box.
Lastly, Netflix's partnership with Vodafone will enable, the teleco's prepaid and postpaid customer to pay for their Netflix subscription via monthly bill or prepaid balance. Prior to this, subscriber could sign up for the subscription only through a credit or debit card. With carrier billing as a payment option, Netflix could expand their user base.
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Netflix announced offline download feature for its app last year, allowing users to download and keep select TV shows and movies on their device for offline viewing. However, it missed one main feature, the ability to store downloaded content to SD card.
But Now Netflix has updated its app, adding SD card support to its download feature. Now you'll be able to download TV and movie shows directly to the microSD card.
To save the contents on the SD card simply go to Settings menus and select SD Card as download location and you're good to go. This feature will come in handy for users who use smartphones with less native storage (4GB, 8GB, 16GB).
Netflix services was launched in India in January last year and the offline download feature was added in November. The feature is useful in countries like India, where Internet connectivity is poor. Moreover this feature also makes it convenient for users to watch their favorite contents while traveling.
The offline download feature was already available in another popular streaming service, Amazon Prime Video at launch, which is giving tough competition to Netflix in India.
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One of the most-requested feature is now available for Netflix users worldwide that in addition to streaming online, will let them download movies and TV shows for offline viewing. YouTube already offers a similar feature.
To download your favorite content, you just have to click the download button on the details page of a TV show or movie to watch it later without internet connection. Once the download is completed, you can access the contents from My Download section of the app.
However, not all the contents are available for download but Netflix says, top streamed TV shows and movies like Stranger Things, The Crown and Orange is the New Black among others can be downloaded, with more on its way.
Users also have the option to select video quality for the download as well, which can be accessed from "App settings". The video quality available are "Standard Quality", which takes less download time and storage space, and "Higher Quality" which consumes more time to download and more storage space.
This feature is included on all plans and Netflix will not charge extra for downloading the contents. It is currently available for Android and iOS apps on phones and tablet. This offline feature is a boon for countries like India or any other country where internet connectivity is slow or limited.
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Netflix is reportedly working on a new feature that will allow subscribers to download certain shows and movies for offline viewing. The rumor comes from Dan Taitz, COO at Panthera, a company that develops streaming software that lets viewers download content said "it's obvious" that "download-on-go" will soon be an option for Netflix customers.
If the report is true than Netflix would have to negotiate from content providers to get permission to let users download shows or movies. The company could offer the offline viewing feature as a secondary subscription service with added cost.
Meanwhile, another report mentions that Netflix is out the market negotiating with content provides to get download rights in addition to streaming rights. They are being asked if Netflix can offer a download service.
The offline viewing feature is expected to debut by the end of 2017. However, you'll still need an internet connection to download movies, but it
has benefits. For instance if you have a slow internet connection, you can download the videos before watching them, avoiding buffer issues.
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Netflix, in an attempt to boost subscribers in India has announced it first India-set original series. The series will be based on Vikram Chandra's critically acclaimed best-selling gangster thriller novel Sacred Games.
The Hindi-English series has been shot in Mumbai and delves into the city's intricate web of organised crime, corruption, politics and espionage that lie beneath India's economic renaissance. Upon completion, the series will also be available to Netflix members globally, although the release date is not known.
Netflix has partnered with filmmaker Anurag Kashyap's Phantom Films to produce the series. The partnership builds upon Netflix' earlier relationship with Kashyap, whose 2012 critically acclaimed two-part epic movie Gangs of Wasseypur streamed as an eight part series on Netflix' U.S service last year.
Earlier this year in January, Netflix announced it global expansion into 130 new countries including India.
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Netflix has announced that it will add mobile data saver feature to its mobile app sometime in May. The streaming service has been testing the feature for quite some time.
With data saver feature, user will have more control over their data usage when streaming contents on mobile networks. This will also give users the option to either stream more videos of low quality under a small data plan or high-definition videos if they have higher data plan.
Netflix said that restrictive caps are not good for customers and the Internet in general as it creates difficulty for those who use their mobile devices for entertainment, work and more. The online streaming giant also confirmed that it has been limiting video streams at 600kbps for year with an aim to make sure that users don't exceed their data limit.
"Our research and testing indicates that many members worry about exceeding their mobile data cap, and don’t need the same resolution on their mobile phone as on a large screen TV to enjoy shows and movies. However, we recognize some members may be less sensitive to data caps or subscribe to mobile data plans from carriers that don’t levy penalties for exceeding caps." Netflix stated in a blog post.
When the data saver feature will be made available, it can be accessed from setting menu within the Netflix app.
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Netflix knows that some of its subscribers are using proxies and other unblocking tool to view content that is not available in their countries and have announced that they will take down on these unblockers in the coming weeks.
Netflix recently expanded its service to more than 130 countries in India. Netflix's catalogue has over 34,000 movies, documentaries and TV shows title, However according to information and analysis website Finder.com reveals that 93 percent of the titles available on Netflix in the U.S are not available in most region. This is because Netflix has licensing agreements that vary from country to country.
To get access to the unavailable contents, subscribers use VPN proxies or any other tools available to get access to a wider catalogue. Now Netflix is able to detect different proxies that is being used to fool their system and take them down.
"Some members use proxies or “unblockers” to access titles available
outside their territory. To address this, we employ the same or similar
measures other firms do. This technology continues to evolve and we are
evolving with it. That means in coming weeks, those using proxies and
unblockers will only be able to access the service in the country where
they currently are. We are confident this change won’t impact members
not using proxies." said the company in a press release.
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As expected, Netflix has officially launched its service in India. The U.S based popular on-demand TV shows and movie streaming service is now available in the country with plans starting at Rs. 500 per month. In addition it will make its entry to 130 other markets in Asia, Middle East and Europe, except China.
Subscription plans begin at Rs. 500 for the basic plan without HD, Rs. 650 with HD for the standard plan and Rs. 800 with Ultra HD for the premium plan. The basic plan allows you to stream onto one screen at any given time. Standard allows for two simultaneous streams and Premium makes that to four.
Netflix is offering one month's free trial in India, and user can access the service through an app on a smart TV, videogame console, streaming player,
smartphone or a tablet.
The Netflix library includes a variety of national as well as international content. Currently Netflix is offering Hindi movies including Piku, Looter, Hate Story, Singh is King, Hum Aapke Hai Kaun, Andaaz Apna Apna and many more. International content include Suits, Narcos, Dexter, Daredevil, Orange is the new Black and so on. Kids content like animated movies like Madagascar, Monster Inc., Barbie and more also also present.
In 2016, Netflix plans to release 31 new and original series, two dozen orginal feature films and documentaries, a wide range of stand-up comedy and 30 original kids series. To know more, you can check Netflix India here > https://www.netflix.com/in/
Netflix has major plans for 2016. It plans to move into new markets and aims to reach 200 countries by the end of this year. It will be debuting its first talk
show, and a movie starring Brad Pitt among others. Netflix has also
reserved exclusive rights to releases from Walt Disney this year.
In India Netflix will be up against the likes of BoxTV, Spuul, BIGFlix, Eros Now, HotStar to name a few.
According to media reports, Netflix, a popular on-demand streaming service could launch in India as early as next week. The company is expected to make the formal announcement for the same at CES 2016, Las Vegas.
For its India launch, Netflix will partner with a local telecom operator, name of which remains under wraps to leverage the latter's 4G Network. Bharti Airtel seems to be the strong contender here, as its is the only company right now to have substantial 4G footprint in the country.
For those unaware, Netflix is the world's largest video streaming company with over 69 million users as of October 2015. It offers a range of content in association with major TV networks and movie studio. The company also produces a number of original shows and has exclusive rights to air some content.
Some of their popular shows include House of Cards, Orange Is the New Black, Daredevil, Jessica Jones and the movie Beasts of No Nation to name a few. It is not know whether India would receive the U.S catalog or custom made catalog specifically made for the country. A one month Netflix subscription cost $8.99 in the United States which roughly translate to Rs. 600.
The entry of Netflix in the country will boost the market of Internet services, as the 3G, 4G and broadband connection network expands in the country. At present, Eros Now and HotStar offers streaming services in India.
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