Why did Netflix add support for a specific feature, only available on Apple, to its movie and TV streaming service?

Spatial Audio is Apple’s take on surround sound. It only works with AirPods Pro and AirPods Max, and only on iPhones or iPads running iOS 14. And it’s not just Netflix that’s adding support. HBO Max, Disney+, and Peacock are also supporting Apple’s thus far mobile-only take on immersive audio. So what does this mean for you and me, and why are these companies so excited to get on board?

“Netflix’s decision to only offer spatial audio support for Apple is another deliberate strategy to add more subscribers to its already staggering 209 million subscribers,” Hrvoje Milakovic, owner of the film, TV and popular culture site Fiction Horizon, told Lifewire via email.

“Apple, for its part, should celebrate this new achievement, because this will at least lead to more customers, as everyone wants to hear the spatial sound.”