Netflix to launch "Shuffle Play" feature globally this year

Netflix offers a wide range of different movies and TV shows to watch. But despite a sea of content, we often find ourselves unable to decide what to watch. Netflix began testing "Shuffle Play" last year to help solve this problem and make this feature available globally.

During its fourth-quarter earnings calls, Netflix announced that it would extensively test a new feature that "gives members the ability to choose to instantly watch a title chosen just for them versus browse." This feature will be available to all Netflix users worldwide during the first half of 2021. Netflix did not reveal the name of the feature as it is still deciding on an official one. But it confirmed to TechCrunch that the feature is Shuffle Play.

Shuffle Play has been in testing since August last year and for the Netflix TV app. There is a shuffle button that appears just below Netflix profiles. TechCrunch has also detected the shuffle button in the Netflix menu bar on television.

The feature description says, "Try Shuffle Play. We'll shuffle everything on Netflix and find things for you to watch based on your tastes." Netflix already recommends movies and TV shows based on what you watched or are currently watching. It looks like Shuffle Play will work similarly as it will be based on your preferences. But for all Netflix content to play, it can be a refreshing way to explore different content.

Netflix had experimented with playing random episodes of TV shows. Selecting this function plays any episode of a TV show. However, this feature would only work on TV shows that don't follow a chronological timeline.