The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns kicked off a wave of remote watch party features on popular streaming services. Unfortunately, the end of lockdowns has prompted streaming platforms to remove that functionality, and now Prime Video is the latest service to remove remote watch parties.
Amazon Prime Video’s Watch Party feature, a pandemic-era addition that allowed users to remotely watch movies and TV shows together, has been quietly discontinued. While the exact timeline of its removal remains unclear, evidence suggests the feature has been unavailable for at least five months. Amazon did not announce anything about its removal, nor was there any in-app notification—the feature was just killed off.
The Watch Party feature was a valuable tool for maintaining social connections during lockdowns, enabling friends and family to enjoy shared viewing experiences despite geographical distances. However, as the world gradually returned to normalcy, its usage likely declined. It’s probably not a core feature for most, but if you happen to have long-distance relationships or loved ones far away, you might have still found some value in the feature.
While Amazon has not publicly addressed the reasons behind this move (Amazon hasn’t even publicly acknowledged the move itself), it’s speculated that low usage and associated maintenance costs could be contributing factors. After all, the feature was removed months ago, but most people are only catching wind about it right now. It’s also not the only streaming service to remove a feature like this, as Disney+ also removed its identical feature almost a year ago.
Although less convenient than a native Amazon feature, Teleparty provides a workaround for those seeking to recreate shared viewing experiences, and can serve as an alternative if you happened to be a frequent user of Watch Party. Discord is also a great way to watch movies and TV shows with remote friends, though you might need to change some settings to prevent issues with DRM.
Source: Android Authority
