Amazon Prime Video appears to be rolling out a shuffle button.
According to Android Central, Android Police spotted the button via Android app. It lets users start a series at any random point. From there, they can continue on in canonical order. While obviously not a great option for watching shows in which characters grow and change over time, it could help cut down time spent choosing an episode of a comedy or programs like Unsolved Mysteries, which you can start and stop at any time in the series and still remain engaged.
Amazon is the latest video streaming service to offer this functionality. Previously, Netflix began offering the service for users to select a movie or show to begin watching at random.
“It’s really working for us where our members can basically indicate to us that they just want to skip browsing entirely, click one button and we’ll pick a title for them just to instantly play,” Greg Peters, COO and Chief Product Officer, told Variety at the time. “And that’s a great mechanism that’s worked quite well for members in that situation.”
Amazon’s solution is a bit different, as it assumes users already have a show in mind that they want to watch. It also only works for single seasons, which could limit its usefulness.
The button will likely be making its way to mobile devices like Android phones and Fire tablets. Amazon hasn’t offered an official statement on when users can expect it. It may pop up for testing for some users, so it’s worth it to keep checking back.
