Netflix Takes Cues From Traditional TV As They Test "Watch Now" Feature
Netflix might have some competitors in the streaming world like Disney+, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video (shout out to Hell's Kitchen), but they continue to dominate the market. According to Variety, they're still taking steps to seemingly compete with traditional television with their new "Watch Now" feature. The company has been testing out a new feature on their television apps that allows user to skip on browsing and go straight into streaming what they were watching last.
The "Watch Now" feature appears on the profile selection page but for those who've already jumped into app, there's an option to use the feature on the sidebar. "Watch Now" will allow users to immediately jump into the next episode of whatever they were watching a title in their personal list. Netflix algorithms are also used to choose along with an explanation of why that title was chosen.
The "Watch Now" feature appears to have been paired up with a "Play Something Else" button. That feature will simply allow a user to check out some of Netflix's recommendations without having to browse. TVs and TV-connected devices, including Roku and Fire TV streaming devices, are the only devices these features are being tested on. However, it's only a small percentage of users that Netflix is testing this out with for a month or two.