Online streaming giant Netflix has announced a new download service that will allow users to watch content while offline for no extra cost.
In an announcement on its website, Eddy Wu, the company’s director of product innovation, said that “while many members enjoy watching Netflix at home, we’ve often heard they also want to continue their Stranger Things binge while on airplanes and other places where Internet is expensive or limited.”
“Just click the download button on the details page for a film or TV series and you can watch it later without an internet connection,” he continued.
The service is available from today for some original Netflix content such as Orange is The New Black, Narcos, and The Crown, whilst additional content will be added in due course.
The download feature is available on all Netflix plans and will also give customers the chance to download content on their phone and tablet devices.
Netflix’s director of technology formerly said that an offline streaming service was “never going to happen” and that it would only provide a “short term fix for a bigger problem.”
However, as competitors such as Amazon Prime and Hulu constantly upgrade and expand their services, Netflix has introduced the feature as another attempt at taking control of the market.
Amazon’s video service Amazon Prime has previously confirmed that it plans to introduce a similar feature, with the company’s vice president Michael Paull saying, “Offline viewing is already available on Fire tablets and we’ll continue to roll out this functionality to other devices in the future.”
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