I can't open the Netflix app on Android, and it's driving me up the wall.
No longer can I play Squid Game on a precariously-placed smartphone while I make breakfast, or flick through new and trending titles on the service while I walk home, to know what to add to my watchlist later on. And it looks like I'm not the only one.
While a major Netflix outage hit users around the world on October 18, and has seemingly been resolved, there are persistent issues opening the Netflix app on Android, even if it's for a minority of users.
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When trying to open the Netflix app myself – on a OnePlus 8T – I'm repeatedly met by a sad-looking satellite illustration, asking me to "try again". It's a small improvement over the sadder "Sorry, we could not reach the Netflix Service, please try again later. (-1000)" message I'd been receiving during the outage.
In our chats with Netflix support, we've been told that the Android problem is "an active issue" and "a known issue", but that there's "no information when this started" – suggesting that Netflix isn't sure at what point the problem began (i.e. before or during the outage).
I'm advised by Netflix customer service to force stop the app, open the Android 'overview' and close the app manually, restart my phone, and then try to update to the latest version of the app (7.120, if available).
Again, looking for Netflix in the Google Play Store gives me an update option, but prodding it repeatedly doesn't do anything. (I'm told to attempt to launch the Netflix app four times at this point, which may work for some, even if it didn't for me.)
Help me, please
Ultimately, this Netflix issue appears not to be too widespread. Other TechRadar colleagues aren't reporting the issue, and the platform seems to be operating fine across iOS, browser, and smart TV apps, which will make for the overwhelming majority of users anyhow.
I can make do without the Android app for a time, but it does limit the flexibility of accessing my Netflix account on the fly.
If you're experiencing the issue – or any others like it – please do let us know. You'll find my email through my author bio at the bottom of this page.
Given Netflix's ongoing turmoil over the Dave Chappell special, though, it might be good to spend some time with other TV streaming services until the platform actually takes some action...
