Product of the Day
Netflix allows turning off autoplay
After many years of unwanted trailers and skipped credits, Netflix now gives you the option to browse and watch in peace.
Disabling autoplay has been a long time coming. Just as people scrambled to find the DVD remote to navigate the menu, people now scramble to find their remote or smartphone to stop the next episode from playing.
Many have criticised the Netflix content menu for auto-playing ads, even Star Wars: The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson tweeted his “current favorite console game: navigating Netflix without triggering autoplay promos.” This is because if a user briefly pauses on a selection, the videos begin to autoplay.
The same criticisms can be made about episodes that auto-rollover, not just for viewers who want to enjoy the credit music, but for those who were snubbed of the opportunity to be recognised in the credits.
The only way to disable the feature at the moment is by using Netflix in a web browser, but it will maintain the settings across devices. It’s managed on a profile-by-profile basis, so one will need to sign into Netflix.com, go to manage profiles, and uncheck the option to “Autoplay next episode in a series on all devices”.
The same procedure can be followed for disabling autoplaying trailers while browsing the catalogue. Following the steps above, one can uncheck “Autoplay previews while browsing on all devices” to disable it.
Netflix says it can take some time before the settings take effect on other devices. We recommend updating the apps on those devices and restarting them, for the best experience.
