Sorry, Netflix support isn't coming to the Apple TV app

AppleInsider · February 14, 2025 8:14PM

As quickly as it came, support for Netflix in the Apple TV app has been removed, and it turns out it wasn't supposed to exist at all.

A smartphone displays a cracked heart over a serene sunset and water reflection, set against a gradient purple and red background.

Netflix confirms Apple TV app integration was just a bug

Earlier we saw what appeared Valentine's Day truce between Netflix and Apple, but unfortunately, that isn't the case.

On Friday morning, US Netflix subscribers were prompted to connect their Netflix account to the Apple TV app. For a short time, Netflix series such as "Squid Game" are showing up in the Apple TV app's Watchlist and Continue Watching sections.

However, it didn't seem to last long, leaving many wondering if the feature was actively being tested for later rollout. We've since learned that wasn't the case.

A Netflix spokesperson told The Verge that Netflix's participation in the Apple TV app was an error. It has, since then, been rolled back.

So, at least for now, it looks like you'll have to keep using the Netflix app. And don't expect Netflix to be cozying up to Apple, or anyone else, anytime soon.

Read on AppleInsider

strangedays · February 14, 2025 8:40PM

It’s striking that the biggest apps (YouTube, Prime Video, Netflix, Max) are all among the worst, most poorly implemented video players out there. YT and Prime are simply god awful, ignoring native UX paradigms and using their crap non-native interfaces. Max has regressed and now doesn’t even support “what did he say?”, or rewind captions; hell, even edge-click to rewind is non-native there now, requiring two clicks to activate instead of one, and other weird anomalies and departures from the native player.

The bigger the company, the more their app sucks, seems to be the rule.

cesar battistini maziero · February 14, 2025 8:52PM

StrangeDays said:

It’s striking that the biggest apps (YouTube, Prime Video, Netflix, Max) are all among the worst, most poorly implemented video players out there. YT and Prime are simply god awful, ignoring native UX paradigms and using their crap non-native interfaces. Max has regressed and now doesn’t even support “what did he say?”, or rewind captions; hell, even edge-click to rewind is non-native there now, requiring two clicks to activate instead of one, and other weird anomalies and departures from the native player.

The bigger the company, the more their app sucks, seems to be the rule.

And they have a lot of developers, earning a lot of money.

It's just like the government ahahahhahhha Google needs a DOGE department ASAP.

darbus69 · February 14, 2025 9:07PM

LET NETFLIX KNOW HOW YOU FEEL, POWER TO THOSE WHO WIELD IT!

ihatescreennames · February 14, 2025 9:15PM

Seriously, if you’re unhappy about this now is the time to cancel. Canceling is easy and signing up again in the future is also easy. If enough cancel now it could send a message.

mattinoz · February 14, 2025 9:38PM

StrangeDays said:

It’s striking that the biggest apps (YouTube, Prime Video, Netflix, Max) are all among the worst, most poorly implemented video players out there. YT and Prime are simply god awful, ignoring native UX paradigms and using their crap non-native interfaces. Max has regressed and now doesn’t even support “what did he say?”, or rewind captions; hell, even edge-click to rewind is non-native there now, requiring two clicks to activate instead of one, and other weird anomalies and departures from the native player.

The bigger the company, the more their app sucks, seems to be the rule.

Why is that surprising?
it follows the poor standard of all tech
worst communications companies are the biggest even all of them are bad at communicating. Windows biggest and chock full of bad and outright stupid interface elements. Outlook has the dumbest conventions that some reason doesn’t just follow windows dumb but takes it up a notch. Biggest Cad-BIM vendors are there by inertia not skill. The bigger the news organisation the less demanding they are on facts and more just content to fill the void.

Bigger just isn’t better

purplepear · February 14, 2025 10:28PM

Well screw Netflix then. Honestly I have not really missed it much since they shut down the in app subscriptions anyway.

heyriddle · February 14, 2025 10:37PM

That’s too bad. This is the one reason I barely watch shows on Netflix. All the other services populate in the Apple TV app so I watch new episodes and added shows based on that. I have to actually go seek out a show to watch on Netflix so that only happens when I am out of other content.

22july2013 · February 15, 2025 12:45AM

Cesar Battistini Maziero said:
It's just like the government ahahahhahhha Google needs a DOGE department ASAP.

Department of Google Efficiency.

I'm 80% sure I would have subscribed to Netflix for the first time ever, if they had introduced their products through the Apple TV+ app.

edited February 14

winstoner71 · February 15, 2025 12:49AM

heyriddle said:

That’s too bad. This is the one reason I barely watch shows on Netflix. All the other services populate in the Apple TV app so I watch new episodes and added shows based on that. I have to actually go seek out a show to watch on Netflix so that only happens when I am out of other content.

All of this. Every word.

entropys · February 15, 2025 2:14AM

Seems pretty miraculous outcome for “an error”.

Someone must have built it.

petri · February 15, 2025 9:21AM

entropys said:

Seems pretty miraculous outcome for “an error”.
Someone must have built it.

Was thinking the same. It’s not something that would happen by accident, clearly the app’s been coded to support integration but some exec has put a stop to it. All very silly and I agree with others that it’s basically killing my interest in Netflix when shows from all my other integrated services are so much easier to find.

kpmercer · February 16, 2025 5:31PM

Just canceled my Netflix account over this. Not paying for services anymore than won't integrate. Disney, Hulu, Max, Paramount.. all the other big ones do.... Wasn't really watching Netflix anymore anyways right now. Thanks for this article, and Netflix's stubbornness, I am going to save $25 bucks a month!!!

edited February 16

mike1 · February 16, 2025 5:36PM

I am sure I am not alone, but I would probably watch more Netflix programming if they played nice. I am rarely tempted to drop out of the Apple TV app to go to Netflix anymore. Would have canceled a long time ago if other members of my household didn't watch more than I.

lolliver · February 16, 2025 10:41PM

mike1 said:

I am sure I am not alone, but I would probably watch more Netflix programming if they played nice. I am rarely tempted to drop out of the Apple TV app to go to Netflix anymore. Would have canceled a long time ago if other members of my household didn't watch more than I.

I was in the same boat as you for a while with other members of my houshold watching Netflix more than me. But I finally got too fed up with Netflix and cancelled it anyway. The rest of the family didn't miss it as much as they thought they would. They have more than enough content to watch on other services and are now appreciating the overall higher quality of content compared to Netflix. There were a few decent shows on Netflix, but it was getting harder to find amongst all the junk.

danox · February 16, 2025 11:39PM

If the Koreans, Japanese and the Nordics finally realize their power and leave Netflix to create their own channels. Netflix would be history for me, the only reason I stay is because I have no time for Torrents anymore, once you sign-up for PBS, Brit-Box, Apple TV, and have a home library of 200 DVDs with occasional dives into YouTube, Netflix is definitely hanging by a thread.

edited February 16

dewme · February 17, 2025 2:02PM

I know from personal experience that big companies can be disciples of the not-invented-here and we-need-total-control way of looking at competition. I’ve always believed that these approaches can ultimately become a hindrance and inhibitor to growth. The reason is that every company only has so many resources to devote to everything they want to go after. To use these resources to greatest effect you have to focus on investments that have the best margins and long term financial benefits. Focusing on the financial benefits should push you to leave some money on the table by not trying to do a particular thing yourself and taking advantage of an off the shelf or already established standard. You then retarget the resources that you would have spent to make that small money to an area that has greater potential for growth and differentiation, i.e., big money. Why companies continue to do a lot of this small money stuff probably has more to do with control and ego rather than the financial benefits they return versus the costs involved in doing them.

cpenzone · February 17, 2025 6:51PM

LOL you don't accidentally launch a feature of that scale. There's no 'bug' that creates that situation.

entropys · February 17, 2025 7:26PM

dewme said:

I know from personal experience that big companies can be disciples of the not-invented-here and we-need-total-control way of looking at competition. I’ve always believed that these approaches can ultimately become a hindrance and inhibitor to growth. The reason is that every company only has so many resources to devote to everything they want to go after. To use these resources to greatest effect you have to focus on investments that have the best margins and long term financial benefits. Focusing on the financial benefits should push you to leave some money on the table by not trying to do a particular thing yourself and taking advantage of an off the shelf or already established standard. You then retarget the resources that you would have spent to make that small money to an area that has greater potential for growth and differentiation, i.e., big money. Why companies continue to do a lot of this small money stuff probably has more to do with control and ego rather than the financial benefits they return versus the costs involved in doing them.

There will be some ambitious dweeb with a brand new MBA certificate on the wall that thinks they have all the answers and the confidence to bullshit their way. It seems there is some other exec who perhaps has a death wish that got the feature coded. It guess we see who won.

pigybank · February 17, 2025 8:00PM

cpenzone said:

LOL you don't accidentally launch a feature of that scale. There's no 'bug' that creates that situation.

I was thinking that. I’m not an app developer but figured there’s a lot more to coding that feature than it could just happen by accident. Clearly at least in house they’ve tested it and it’s coded in the app, but merely disabled, for now.

I have canceled Netflix before over this feature but there are shows I just didn’t want to miss. I regularly tweet at Netflix that they need to add this feature. Their app is archaic and nearly impossible to navigate and it’s only gotten worse over time.

dewme · February 18, 2025 12:59PM

I just finished watching Season 3 of Resident Alien on Netflix. I haven’t laughed out loud so much in a very long time. If I started cancelling Netflix or any other services over small stuff like this I’d feel like the metal ball inside a pinball machine. This should not be a triggering event. My brain can only process a finite number of give-a-shits so I try to allocate them to things that have a real impact on my life.

edited February 18

Sorry, Netflix support isn't coming to the Apple TV app

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