Streamer borrows from TV talent shows

Netflix is about to find out whether viewers want to do more than watch: company technologists told TechCrunch on Friday that the platform will pilot interactive, real-time voting in select live specials and music competitions, letting audiences pick setlists, vote finalists through and even unlock encore songs. The feature builds on Netflix’s push into live events — boxing, stand-up, awards tie-ins — but this is the first time the streamer will let the audience change an outcome mid-broadcast. Engineers said the tool is optimized for phones first, with latency low enough that votes can be tallied and reflected on screen in under 10 seconds in North America, Europe and parts of Asia. For Netflix, it’s a way to make concerts, K-pop variety shows and docu-performances feel more like appointment TV and less like passive replays.

New playground for labels and K-culture

Music marketers who were briefed this week said the system opens an obvious door for Korean and Latin acts that already rely on fandom voting to drive engagement. A global K-pop showcase, for example, could have fans choose which unit performs a final stage or which city gets a bonus fan-meet stream. Entertainment lawyers noted that the new tool also creates upsell opportunities — exclusive voting windows for premium subscribers, or sponsored “power votes” tied to brands. Netflix plans to roll out the tech on Nov. 29 with a holiday music special and will watch completion rates, second-screen usage and merch clicks to decide how widely to deploy it in 2026. If the numbers work, talent agencies expect to pitch more interactive concerts to the service, giving artists another route to global audiences even when touring schedules are tight.