Netflix Adds Live Interactive Voting to Shows

Netflix is taking a major step into interactive entertainment by introducing real-time voting features for its live programming. This new functionality, announced by Chief Technology Officer Elizabeth Stone at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, aims to transform passive viewing into an engaging, participatory experience. Audiences watching live broadcasts can now cast votes directly from their television or mobile device, instantly shaping the direction and outcomes of the shows they are watching.

Initial testing for this interactive capability took place during the live cooking series “Dinner Time Live with David Chang” last August. In one episode, viewers were asked to choose between tuna fish and grilled cheese, while another poll questioned whether soups are better than salads. The results appeared on-screen shortly after voting closed. Building on this trial, Netflix plans to integrate the voting system into the upcoming revival of “Star Search,” the classic talent competition returning to screens next year after a two-decade absence.

Stone explained the viewer experience during her presentation. “Imagine you’re at home watching ‘Star Search’ on your TV. Using either your television remote or your smartphone, you can submit a vote that determines whether a contestant moves forward or gets eliminated,” she said. “This represents an early look at how we believe content can become more interactive across different devices. A Netflix subscriber can genuinely feel like part of the story, influencing the narrative and becoming fully immersed in the action.”

The voting process is designed to be straightforward. On-screen prompts notify viewers when a voting opportunity arises, giving them a limited timeframe to submit their choice. Those who rewind the broadcast or join the livestream after it has started may miss the voting window entirely, preserving the live, real-time nature of the interaction.

According to Netflix, early testing demonstrated consistent audience participation from one episode to the next. The company interprets this sustained engagement as a positive indicator for the future of interactive programming. In an increasingly crowded streaming market, Netflix hopes these features will foster a sense of community and shared experience among its subscribers, encouraging them to tune in live rather than watching on-demand.

While the live voting system represents a new frontier for Netflix, it is not the platform’s first experiment with audience interaction. Previous reality shows like “Too Hot to Handle” and “Love Is Blind” incorporated viewer polls, though not in real time during a live broadcast.

Beyond live television, Netflix is expanding real-time interactivity into other formats. The company is developing Party Games for TV, along with future plans for interactive podcasts, allowing users to engage with content as it happens. Stone also highlighted the company’s ventures into cloud gaming. “Cloud gaming introduces a similar interactive dynamic,” she noted. “We have living room party games, such as Boggle, launching later this year. You play on your television screen with friends and family using smartphones as controllers. It’s another approach to creating fun, immersive, in-the-moment content alongside our traditional film and television offerings.”

In a related announcement, Stone revealed that Netflix is launching immersive homepage experiences designed to bring its content library to life through animation and dynamic visual effects. A Halloween Collection experience is already available, with a Holiday Collection scheduled for December and future themed experiences planned for popular franchises like “Bridgerton.”

(Source: TechCrunch)