Hulu has officially announced a new Watch Party feature that allows you to watch shows and movies together with friends and family during the winter holidays while socially distancing.
Watch Party supports up to eight viewers and is available for all Hulu subscribers whether you use the ad-supported or ad-free plan. That’s great news for all of you who took advantage of the recent Black Friday deal where you got a year of Hulu with ads for $2 per month. However, it’s important to note that the Watch Party feature is limited to users 18 years or older and it doesn’t appear to be available to mobile users at this time.
To use Watch Party, look for the icon on the Details page for the title you want to watch. After clicking on it, viewers can share a link with up to seven additional Hulu subscribers and chat in real-time. Members of your Watch Party will also be able to control playback in case someone needs to take a quick bathroom break.
I’m sure you’re wondering, what happens if you have a mix of users who pay for ad-supported and ad-free Hulu in your Watch Party? At least, I know I was wondering that. In that case, Hulu will pause the video for those with the ad-free plan while ads play and resume once they have finished. That’s the perfect opportunity to chat about what you’ve just watched though.
Hulu is not the first to add a way to watch remotely with friends and family, during the COVID-19 pandemic several streaming services have added similar features, including Disney+ and Prime Video from Amazon.
