As entertainment companies scramble to keep up with what the kids are into these days, Netflix announced yesterday that it will launch its redesigned mobile app with a TikTok-like vertical video feed at the end of April. For those worried that this means the streamer will be pushing out nightmarishly cropped versions of The Irishman, it seems the focus will mostly be on advertising its shows and movies, at least for now, anyway. The vertical feed will feature clips from Netflix series, with a link to the full version in its God-intended aspect ratio.
The Q2 shareholder letter announcing the news states that “the lines between entertainment on TV and mobile devices are blurring.” It isn’t the first time executives at the streamer have invoked this argument. Earlier this year, when the company was still slated to acquire Warner Bros., Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos argued in a Senate antitrust committee hearing that the government shouldn’t block the merger because Netflix isn’t just competing with traditional entertainment companies, but also platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. While Netflix seemingly made this point to argue it wouldn’t be a monopoly if it merged with Warner Bros., the streamer’s push toward vertical content suggests it genuinely views these user-content-focused social media platforms as a threat.
Beyond the upcoming mobile update, Netflix recently revamped its TV app, which included another somewhat lackluster push into gaming. The rest of the shareholder letter mostly talks about the termination fee the company received from the canceled Warner Bros. acquisition, as well as many mentions of how the company will “leverage AI to improve the member experience,” a truly shudder-worthy combination of words. Netflix recently acquired Ben Affleck’s start-up InterPositive, which makes AI-powered tools for filmmakers, and is geared at “cutting costs” (which means cutting jobs for those not versed in corpo speak).
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