- Netflix has announced that it will roll out a major mobile UI update later this year, introducing vertical video streaming.
- This feed will highlight new content in Netflix’s library of original movies and shows, as well as integrate clips from video podcasts.
- Netflix’s last major redesign was for its TV interface in May 2025, but it received backlash from users.
Another big Netflix revamp is on the way, and it’s one of the most significant redesigns for one of the best streaming services: it’s getting a vertical video stream.
During Netflix’s Q4 2025 earnings conference call, CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos reflected on Netflix’s successful year, but didn’t shy away from giving us a taste of what’s in store for its mobile experience. They announced that a vertical video stream will be rolled out in late 2026, with Peters describing it as “a broader update to the mobile experience.”
It’s not new information that Netflix has been experimenting with short-form video for a while now, but this new redesign will see it implemented more widely. During the earnings call, Peters shared that the platform has been testing vertical video streams “for about six months,” which are filled with clips from Netflix original shows and movies.
For now, that’s pretty much all that Netflix’s vertical video streaming entails, but Peters assured there will be more to come; “You can imagine us bringing more clips based on new types of content,” he shared. So how does Netflix plan to advance its vertical video streaming in the future? Video podcasts are the short answer.
Look
Analysis: reject the change
While there’s plenty of room to add more Netflix content to its vertical video ecosystem (I can see it as a means to primarily promote highly anticipated movies and shows), video podcasts will also be integrated, which Netflix has invested a lot of time and money into to compete with companies like YouTube. Peters went into more detail:
“Video podcasts were added to the overall service, so we’re adding sort of an appropriate component to that vertical video stream,” he explained. This next chapter for Netflix follows its biggest UI update for TVs, which launched in May 2025, and similarly to this update, the new mobile interface “will become a starting point for (us) to continue to iterate, test, evolve and improve,” Peters added.
Netflix’s massive revamp of its TV interface marked a big step for the streaming platform, but it was met with a wave of negative reactions from users shortly after its launch. On the one hand, users claimed that the new “unnecessary changes” made it even more difficult to find the type of content they like to stream, while Netflix defended the redesign.
As for this upcoming vertical video stream, I can’t imagine it will please subscribers, given their harsh criticism of Netflix’s TV upgrade. It doesn’t sit well with me that Netflix is going full steam ahead with short-form content on the app; It simply reads as a small attempt to mirror more successful vertical videos like YouTube Shorts or Instagram Reels. Netflix is, first and foremost, a space for movie lovers to enjoy quality content, so let’s keep it that way.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to receive news, reviews and opinions from our experts in your feeds. Be sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form and receive regular updates from us on WhatsApp also.
