Since Safari is one of the few browsers to support HEVC playback, alongside Edge, it would seem 4K Netflix should be supported in Safari.īut another issue arises with DRM, a way of protecting the show from being copied and pirated. The DRM Netflix uses for 4K content is the new HDCP 2.2 (High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection), which macOS does not support as of Mojave. Netflix supports a lot of codecs, but only uses HEVC for 4K. YouTube only uses the VP9 codec for 4K video, but Safari doesn’t support VP9, so you need to use Chrome to watch 4K YouTube videos. With the rise of 4K content, the tech world is currently in the process of switching over to newer codecs, and they’re all fighting about it.Ĭodecs are built into your computer but can vary by browser. The exact method for this is called a video coding format, and the program that does the packing and unpacking is called a codec. When you stream video on any platform, it has to be packaged into something your computer can understand. And it’s not just Macs-4K streaming is an issue in general. The 4K content itself isn’t the problem it’s an issue of compatibility, codecs, and DRM ( Digital Rights Management).