YouTube and Netflix Challenge AirPlay Via DIAL by Connecting TV and Mobile Apps

One reason how Apple has remained a reliable brand is through its innovative features. And one such feature is AirPlay, a protocol that allows any Apple device like an iPad or an iPhone to wirelessly connect with any other Apple device like AppleTV. You don’t need a cable connection; just Wi-Fi connectivity is enough to establish a connection between two Apple devices.

This function now has some competition from a protocol developed by Netflix and YouTube. Read on to find out more about it.

What is DIAL?

As reported by GigaOm, both Netflix and YouTube originally planned to create individual apps. But now they have joined hands and created DIAL – Discovery and Launch – to rival AirPlay. Let’s see how it works.

The concept of DIAL is simple and extremely similar to that of AirPlay. With this protocol intended at second screen sharing, you can connect any DIAL-enabled devices between each other. For example, if you are operating Netflix on your smartphone and if you have a DIAL-enabled smart TV, you can launch the app on your TV too. This way, you can remote control the application through any of the two devices.

This duplex communication can massively improve user experience and that is where the Netflix-YT duo want to increase their market share.

How is DIAL Different from AirPlay?

There are two key differences between DIAL and AirPlay.

Firstly, DIAL can automatically launch apps on the second device once connected. And if the app is not already downloaded, it will direct the user to the App Store to download it. This detection is not present in AirPlay.

Considering Apple’s reluctance to open up its feature to third parties, DIAL is seeing reception from the bigwigs of the tech world. Providers like Hulu and Pandora are extending their services to gain future connectivity to DIAL so that users can enjoy those services across devices without the need for cables.

All of this means that Apple will strive harder to bring more features into AirPlay. It will be great to see how it all plans out.

But the downside of DIAL is that it is only intended for streaming services like YT, NF, and Hulu. On the other hand, AirPlay lets you play games with your iPhone as a controller, play music, and print documents. This is where it has an edge over DIAL, which will remain a streaming-only second screen protocol.

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