Netflix Inc.

11/30/2021 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 11/30/2021 09:00

Celebrating Five Years of Downloads on Netflix →

Holidays; check. Long commutes to visit friends and family; check. A must-watch list of shows and movies to keep you entertained; check! 'Tis the season to watch your favorite titles anytime, anywhere even when your internet is spotty, thanks to Netflix Downloads.

Downloads have become one of our members' most loved on-the-go features, so it's hard to believe it's only been available for five years(!). It's been incredibly gratifying to see our members embrace the Downloads feature all over the world, especially in countries like Mexico, Brazil, and India, where downloads are most popular. In Southeast Asia, the average number of downloads per mobile member per month is 29, which means our members in countries like Thailand and Vietnam are downloading something nearly every day.

So what are our members downloading? As of November, Squid Game, Maid, You Season 3, and The Guilty are our most popular downloads.

Seeing how much our members love downloads has also inspired us to make multiple improvements to this feature over the years. We always want to provide the best streaming experience, and the evolution of our downloads feature is proof of how we remain close to our members, listening to their feedback and adding more capabilities to make it fast, fun, and easy to enjoy your next favorite show or movie.

  • It all started back in 2016 when we introduced Downloads for mobile, allowing members to watch their favorite series, films and stand-up specials offline. Downloads keep you entertained no matter where you are or what kind of wifi you have.

  • Two years later came Smart Downloads. Once you toggle 'Smart Downloads' on, it automatically does the heavy lifting for you, deleting a downloaded episode after you've finished watching it, and also downloading the next one when you're connected to wifi. Say goodbye to that last-minute "I-forgot-to-download-the-next-episode" panic.

  • In February 2021, we launched Downloads for You. This feature downloads a personalized selection of movies and shows just for you - ensuring that you always have something new to watch. You can even choose how much content you want downloaded. It's like getting tailored recommendations delivered personally to your profile.

  • Most recently, we unveiledPartial Downloading in June. There's nothing worse than when you settle in for a series or film only to discover that it didn't finish downloading. Now, even when you lose your wifi connection or max out on your data plan, you can still watch a partially downloaded movie or episode. When you're back on data, the rest will finish downloading automatically so you can pick up right where you left off.

So if you're gearing up for a trip or have bad wifi - don't forget your favorite Netflix shows and movies are only a download away.