Netflix Party lets you watch shows with friends while respecting social distancing

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“Netflix & Chill” might have been a popular saying at one point, but current coronavirus pandemic mitigations include social distancing, which means the “chill” part is right out the window. Thankfully, someone has come to the rescue, giving users a way to enjoy Netflix content with their friends.

While you could voice chat and try to sync the play buttons by counting down, there’s a better way. Netflix Party is a Rabbit-style extension for Google Chrome that lets you create a chatroom so you and your friends can all watch the same show at the same time.

The only downside? You’ll have to watch through your Chrome browser, but if that is of no concern, here’s how to set up your own Netflix Party.

How to set up your own Netflix Party

Seriously, this is ridiculously easy to set up.

• Install the Netflix Party extension
• Go to Netflix and sign in to your account
• Find something to watch, then pause playback
• Tap on the Netflix Party extension logo
• Tick the box that says Only I have control because nothing sucks more than someone else grabbing the remote
• Copy the URL that the extension gives you, and hand that to your friends
• Once they open the URL, they’ll get dumped into your chatroom, and you can start streaming the show together
• If you’re wondering how to exit the party, just exit the player

Now, we know Netflix is pretty chill about lending out your passwords, but we’re not sure about the legality of re-streaming content like this, so maybe Netflix Party won’t last that long, but then again, with so many companies currently pivoting due to the coronavirus, maybe they’ll let this one stay up for a while.

What do you think? Is this something that you would use? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Here’s everything coming to Netflix in April 2020
• Netflix rolled out a top 10 list of its most-watched content – here’s how to access it
• The best streaming devices to keep you entertained while you’re stuck at home
• As more movie theaters shut down, Universal is putting its new movies on streaming services

Joe Rice-Jones

Maker, meme-r, and unabashed geek with nearly half a decade of blogging experience at KnowTechie, SlashGear and XDA Developers. If it runs on electricity (or even if it doesn't), Joe probably has one around his office somewhere, with particular focus in gadgetry and handheld gaming. Shoot him an email at joe@knowtechie.com.