Watching with friends who aren’t there is the new watch party

The Future. Thanks to COVID, entertainment streaming services and social-gaming platforms rolled out new features making virtual group watch parties a thing. As the streaming wars heat up, companies could use co-viewing to leverage FOMO and lock in new subscribers or users.

Link to the living room

Watching stuff with friends as a group has never been easier… or more separated. 

• HBO Max, Hulu, Disney+, and Netflix all debuted proprietary “watch together” features that allow multiple people to stream titles simultaneously.
• Twitch, Roblox, and Fortnite all introduced features to experience live music in a communal setting.

According to viewership measurement firm Nielsen, most streaming activities are done in people’s living rooms on smart TVs, showing a “growth in co-viewing.”

Program the party
The increase in co-viewing has led some companies to experiment with the possibilities of digital platform congregation, making the experience more interactive.

• HBO Max experimented with co-viewing through Snapchat so viewers could chat while watching.
• Disney+’s “Group Watch” feature lets viewers add emoji reactions while watching a title.
• TikTok’s virtual The Weeknd concert allowed viewers to vote on the visual theme in real-time.

Now all one of these platforms has to do is recreate Trivia Night.