Netflix has never been a big fan of allowing subscribers to view video offline. But some cracks in that wall started to show back in June when an “open secret” was revealed by a consulting firm analyst named Dan Rayburn, who toils for Frost and Sullivan. Rayburn said that Netflix was working on a way to allow subscribers to use the service even when they are not connected to the internet. That report said that this capability would be available before the end of this year.
As we said, that was back in June and now we are down to the last 30 or so days that Netflix has left in order to make that report come true. But a press release disseminated by Netflix this morning says that offline viewing will launch this afternoon for iOS and Android users. Already, there is word that those with iOS are able to use the new feature now. A special tab lists the shows and movies that are eligible to be viewed offline. Besides thumbing through the tab, you can find a show that can be viewed offline by looking for a little “download” button by the title.
The whole idea here is to download a streaming movie or show while you have a Wi-Fi connection, and play it back later for viewing at a location where a Wi-Fi hotspot cannot be found. Or, you can view a downloaded video while in Airplane mode. The new feature will be offered on all Netflix plans. We should mention that the default mode for offline viewing is low resolution. If you switch to “higher quality” playback, it still won’t bump you to the highest resolution available.
Earlier today, Netflix sent out a tweet to let every one know that this new feature was here.
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source: @netflix via Engadget
