Ubuntu's Native Netflix Support Arrives As Promised

Native Netflix support on Linux has been a long-running wish among users, and though methods have been around to get the service to work, none were as simple as firing up your browser and getting right into the movies, no hassle necessary. Last month news that a change was afoot surfaced, with Netflix's Paul Adolph asking questions and saying that, if certain wheels could be put in motion, he'd bring up a case for nixing the user agent filtering that foiled users.

As we reported last month, Adolph had fired off a message to the Ubuntu Developer mailing list advising that if a newer version of the Network Security Services library was installed on Ubuntu — version 3.16.2 or greater, to be precise, Netflix would work on Ubuntu via Chrome. He wanted to know how to ensure the newer version would be pushed out with updates.

Canonical said it would include the newer version with its next security update for Ubuntu 14.04 LTE, and that it would get that update out presently. Once it was out, Adolph said he'd see about getting user agent filtering removed, which would allow Ubuntu users to use Netflix without tweaking their user agent.

Fast-forward to today, and an announcement was made over at Ubuntu Insights that native Netflix support on Ubuntu is available, as long as users use Chrome. No adjustments are needed — just install the browser and Netflix will work the same as on Windows and OS X.

SOURCE: Ubuntu