Netflix gives users a new way to watch - how it works

• Netflix is changing the way subtitles work.
• Viewers will get a new option very soon.
• But what exactly will be different?

Netflix is changing the way that subtitles work on its original shows and movies. The streaming service is shaking things up in quite the dramatic fashion.

Putting on subtitles while you watch TV and films has become increasingly popular in recent years. The streaming giant says that 50 per cent of Americans now use them “most of the time" when watching content.

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But what is Netflix changing? Here’s all you need to know:

Netflix announces new way to watch its shows

Going forward, Netflix is revamping the way that subtitles work on its original shows and movies. Viewers who select the normal ‘English’ option - and not the closed caption (CC) - will only have subtitles for dialogues and not for every sound in the programme or film.

A Netflix spokesperson explained: “Just in time for all the twists, inner monologues, and intense eye contact in the final season of YOU — we’re introducing a new option: original language subtitles that show only the spoken dialogue.

“Until now, if you wanted subtitles in the original language, you’d turn on Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH/CC), which includes not only dialogue but also audio cues like [phone buzzing] or [dramatic music swells], as well as speaker names. This new subtitle option will first appear on new titles coming to Netflix, starting with YOU Season 5.

“When you open the language picker while watching the new season, you’ll now see two subtitle options in English: English, which shows only the spoken dialogue, and English (CC), which includes both dialogue and audio cues like [door slams]. And we’re not stopping at English — these subtitles will be available on all new Netflix originals in every language we offer in addition to SDH/CC going forward.”

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