Netflix introduces new feature for OTT viewers. Here's how to use it?

OTT giant Netflix has introduced an all-new subtitle option under which the viewers will only get to see just spoken dialogue. After the latest change, binge watchers can now get the choice to omit audio cues, which includes background noises like phone notification, door slamming or dramatic music swells, among others, USA Today reported.

What's new on Netflix?

In an official release on April 24, the OTT platform shared that the titles from now onwards will be highlighting two options for subtitles in the original language.

Earlier, when a user opted for subtitles in the original language, it used to turn on the Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH/CC) option. Apart from the dialogue from the show or film, this also includes several audio cues along with the names of the speaker.


Moving forward, subscribers of Netflix will be having more than a single way to use captions in the original language.

Post this change, users get to pick from two subtitle options in English. These include the new English option that will have only the spoken dialogue as well as the English (CC) option that has been there for a long time. The second one adds audio cues and the speaker's name to the dialogue.

The latest subtitle version by Netflix has made its debut with the fifth and final season of psychological thriller series You.

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How to use the new subtitle option?

Netflix subscribers will get to see both the English and English (CC) options in the language picker.

To locate the language picker on the device, users can check the 'Audio & Subtitles' option. Some of them provide the option in the speech bubble icon that remains available on the screen.

Netflix has assured that it will not stop at English only as the platform looks forward to making this subtitles option available across various different languages for its originals.

Why does this matter?

Last year, a survey carried out by Preply revealed that 50 per cent or half of the American viewers look forward to watching content on OTT platforms, while keeping the subtitles on most of the time. In the same study, 55 per cent people claimed that it has become harder to listen to dialogue in films and shows, compared with earlier times.

In its official release, Netflix shared similar data that showed that almost half of all the viewing hours on the OTT platform in the country takes place with the caption or subtitles on.

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FAQs

1. When was Season 5 of You released?
The fifth and final season of the series came out on April 24.

2. Will Netflix add only-dialogue subtitle options for other languages also?
Yes, the OTT platform stated that it is working on adding same-language subtitles to its original shows in all the languages that it offers in addition to the SDH/CC option.