As YouTube, TikTok and Instagram continue to dominate mobile viewing, Netflix is rethinking how its app fits into a social video landscape. During its fourth-quarter earnings call Tuesday, the company announced plans to revamp its mobile app and expand its short-form video feature, which it says could help promote the new series of original video podcasts it introduced last week.
Netflix’s redesigned mobile app is set to launch later in 2026 and is intended to “better serve the expansion of our business over the next decade,” according to co-CEO Greg Peters. The update will act as a basis for continued experimentation, allowing the company to “iterate, test, evolve and improve” its offering over time.
At the heart of the redesign is the deeper integration of vertical video streams, which the streaming giant has been experimenting with since May. The feed displays short clips from Netflix shows and movies in a format familiar to users of TikTok and Instagram Reels.
“You can imagine us bringing more clips based on new types of content, like video podcasts,” Peters noted during the earnings call, further signaling that Netflix sees scannable short-form clips as a powerful tool to drive attention and increase time spent on the app.
Netflix is also making a major push into video podcasts — an area where YouTube has long been a leader. This week, Netflix debuted its first original video podcasts, including shows hosted by high-profile personalities like Pete Davidson and Michael Irvin. The company has also partnered with major podcast players to bring established video podcast libraries to the platform, including tie-ups with Spotify and iHeartMedia.
Both of these moves signal a broader effort to make content discovery and daily engagement on Netflix more like a social platform experience. At the same time, Netflix has been careful to position its strategy as one of experimentation rather than imitation. Speaking at the TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 conference, CTO Elizabeth Stone emphasized that the company is not trying to become TikTok, but rather to enhance its entertainment discovery capabilities through its mobile-facing features.
During the earnings call, co-CEO Ted Sarandos reflected on the broader shift in the streaming industry: services are no longer just competing with each other, but with the entire entertainment industry.
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“There has never been more competition for creators, for consumer attention, for advertising and subscription dollars, the competitive lines around television consumption are already blurred,” Sarandos said. “TV is not what we grew up with. TV is now almost everything. The Oscars and the NFL are on YouTube… Apple is competing for Emmys and Oscars, and Instagram is next.”
Sarandos also commented on Netflix’s evolving film strategy, referring to the company’s recent shift in film strategy as it prepares to acquire Warner Bros. This signals an opening to hybrid distribution models as the line between cinema, streaming and social content continues to blur.
In 2025, Netflix generated $45.2 billion in revenue, with ad revenue exceeding $1.5 billion. In addition, Netflix surpassed the milestone of 325 million paid subscriptions in the fourth quarter.
