After reaching the milestone of 200 million paid subscribers, streaming giant Netflix has finally confirmed to add a much-anticipated shuffle button for all users this year. The company, in an official letter, confirmed that the feature will become available to all users in 2021.
The company has been teasing the feature since the end of 2019 and testing it to make it usable for its massive user-base. Initially, it only worked for TV shows and not for movies. However, in its second round of testing, several users started seeing it pop-up on the platform for shuffle-playing both movies and TV shows.
So now, the company, in a recent letter to its shareholders, said that the user-response to the feature has been positive. As a result, the company confirmed that it will be adding the button for all its users sometime in the first half of 2021 to help them discover new TV shows and movies to watch on the platform.
Once the feature rolls out to global users, you will find the new “Shuffle Play” button on the home screen of the platform, right beneath your profile avatar. Initially, Netflix had decided to name the button “Play Something”. However, they changed it to “Shuffle Play” for now. Although it can change to something more appropriate by the time it rolls out for the masses.
Now, as per the testing reports, clicking this button will start a random movie or a TV show which the platform’s algorithm sees fit based on your taste. This could include an unfinished movie you were watching, something from your watchlist, or a movie that’s similar to something you have already watched.
Moreover, another version of this button has been discovered inside Netflix’s TV app in some regions. The folks at Techcrunch found the new “Shuffle Play” button in their TV app’s sidebar options that encourage users to “try Shuffle Play” to start watching something random based on personal tastes.
So, are you someone who scrolls mindlessly through Netflix, looking for something to watch? Well, if you are, then I’m sure this new button will be a huge catalyst for you to discover new shows and movies on the platform.
