A giant leap by Netflix in regards to the experience of using its platform since it has confirmed that the Android application will have control of the playback speed. As we can read in The Verge , the streaming channel will allow the user to choose at what exact speed he wants to play the content, and he can choose between 0.5x, 0.75x for slow playback or 1.25x and 1.5x for faster viewing. .
It is less of a choice than YouTube allows, but it is a step in the right direction to give the user an experience more suited to their needs. This new function will be available for both offline downloads and streaming playback and must be selected with each title to be played (it is not configured by default).
This last measure has been adopted to avoid accidentally playing a 1.5x movie without realizing it, as we did not remember to deactivate this speed applied in another playback. The distribution of this new function will be initially localized but throughout the days it will be available worldwide.
As you know, Netflix has been testing the modification of the playback speed since 2019, but this is a measure that has generated significant controversy in Hollywood. Several directors warned that the content distributors could not alter the content but the platform has ignored this request, as has become clear.
From Netflix it has been confirmed that it was a function “highly demanded by users over the years”, in the words of Keela Robinson, “and more importantly, the consumer values the flexibility that allows reducing the speed of playback if subtitles are being used. ” This new function makes things easier for those who have hearing problems but also for the blind who “can understand the audio played at a faster speed”, as confirmed by the National Federation of Blind.
