Netflix has completely eliminated the AirPlay support with the latest iOS App.
Those who updated the Netflix app yesterday will have noticed that Netflix has removed the support for the streaming protocol AirPlay without replacement. So it is no longer possible to surf through the Netflix offer on the iPhone or iPad and then send the desired content to Apple TV – there is only one cryptic error message. After all, the Netflix support document points out the new circumstance with a small sentence: Allegedly there are technical reasons which forbid the support of AirPlay.
Of course this is nonsense, after all Chromecast is still supported. Especially at a time when many new televisions with Apple’s AirPlay 2 support are coming out, this step is surprising. There could be two reasons: Firstly, Netflix is testing cheaper price models in some markets that only provide for consumption on a mobile device – but then the ongoing support for Chromecast would make no sense.
Closer to reality may be the fact that Netflix simply wants to hurt Apple users. Recently Netflix cancelled the possibility to buy a subscription via the iOS App, because Apple always charges 30% on first purchase. Maybe they want to exclude Apple devices from their own system to have a better position in negotiations. As always, when two big companies argue for the end consumer it simply means: bad luck.
