Netflix is putting the kibosh on a key convenience feature of its mobile app: the ability to cast Netflix videos from your phone to connected TVs and streaming video players. 

An updated Netflix support page now says that the streamer “no longer supports casting shows from a mobile device to most TVs and TV-streaming devices,” adding that “you’ll need to use the remote that came with your TV or TV-streaming device to navigate Netflix.” 

The change (which was first reported by Android Authority) came as a surprise to Chromecast and Google TV Streamer users, who recently began noticing the missing “Cast” button on the Netflix app. 

Netflix had already nixed Apple AirPlay support from its mobile app back in 2019, meaning that Apple users could no longer cast Netflix videos to their TVs from their iPhones. 

Chromecast users with older versions of the Netflix app reported that they still had the Cast button on their devices, but those who have updated to the latest app say the casting option has vanished. 

With the move, Netflix has all but eliminated the ability to stream Netflix videos from phones. As Android Authority notes, there are a couple of exceptions: Casting to older Chromecast devices without remotes still works, as does casting to Google Cast-enabled TVs. 

We’ve reached out to Netflix for comment. 

Netflix has gradually been ramping up its efforts to control how subscribers are streaming its videos, most visibly when it comes to its crackdown on password sharing. 

Casting Netflix from your phone to a TV could come handy in many scenarios, including if you’re at a friend’s house who isn’t a Netflix subscriber, or if you want to watch Netflix on a hotel TV. 

In the former case, Netflix doesn’t want you watching its shows on a big screen in a non-Netflix household; in the latter instance, Netflix would prefer you do your streaming over a Netflix app installed on the hotel’s TV. 

Author: Ben Patterson, Senior Writer, TechHive