Which video and music sources can you play together on Watchpubs?

Updated

Watchpubs supports YouTube (via its built-in search bar), SoundCloud, Google Drive files, Twitch clips, and direct video links that end in a file path such as videos/example.mp4. It does not support Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, or similar subscription streaming services. The practical rule: if you can get a playable link to the media itself, you can probably share it in a room; if the content sits behind a service's own player and login, you can't.

Supported sources at a glance

Source How you add it Notes
YouTube Built-in search bar; play in two clicks Search results can be shared to the chat or added to a playlist; the app also suggests videos related to the one currently playing
SoundCloud Paste or play the track in the room Listed on the site as a supported way to listen to music together
Google Drive files Paste the link The app handles the rest once the link is in
Twitch clips Paste the link Works for clips, not full live streams as described
Direct video links Paste a link ending in a file, e.g. videos/example.mp4 Works only when you can obtain the direct file link; not every site exposes one
Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, etc. — Not supported; the site points to Scener or Metastream for those services

How each source works in practice

YouTube

This is the most guided path. You use the room's YouTube search bar, pick a video, and it plays for everyone in the room. From there you can drop the video into the chat or a playlist, and the app surfaces related videos so the session keeps moving without leaving the room.

SoundCloud and pasted links

For music and for anything outside YouTube, the workflow is the same: get a link and paste it. The site describes this as working "from any source," with Google Drive files and Twitch clips given as examples. The app takes over playback once the link is in.

Direct video files

The one real constraint is here. A link must point at the video file itself, ending in something like videos/example.mp4. The site is explicit that this can be done in various ways but "it works with not every website" — so expect some sources to fail even when the page clearly shows a video.

What won't work, and what to use instead

Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and comparable services are not supported. If watching those together is the goal, the site itself recommends Scener or Metastream. Plan around this rather than trying workarounds: a service that requires its own logged-in player is outside what Watchpubs handles.

Room limits worth knowing before you invite people

  • Capacity: up to 100 users in a single room at once.
  • Mobile fullscreen: open the room link in your mobile browser and install Watchpubs as an app through the browser menu — on iOS, that's "Add to home screen."

If a link won't play, check first whether it's a direct file link rather than a page URL, then whether the source is one of the unsupported subscription services. Those two checks cover most failures.