diff --git a/RELEASENOTES.md b/RELEASENOTES.md
index a31af17fbb..c03734fc3e 100644
--- a/RELEASENOTES.md
+++ b/RELEASENOTES.md
@@ -20,6 +20,9 @@
         for seeking.
     *   Use theme when loading drawables on API 21+
         ([#220](https://github.com/androidx/media/issues/220)).
+    *   Make the maximum difference of the start time of two segments to be
+        merged configurable in `SegmentDownloader` and subclasses
+        ([#248](https://github.com/androidx/media/pull/248)).
     *   Add `ConcatenatingMediaSource2` that allows combining multiple media
         items into a single window
         ([#247](https://github.com/androidx/media/issues/247)).
diff --git a/libraries/exoplayer/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/offline/SegmentDownloader.java b/libraries/exoplayer/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/offline/SegmentDownloader.java
index d4b8ece726..7a8ac0ba2b 100644
--- a/libraries/exoplayer/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/offline/SegmentDownloader.java
+++ b/libraries/exoplayer/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/offline/SegmentDownloader.java
@@ -75,8 +75,9 @@ public abstract class SegmentDownloader<M extends FilterableManifest<M>> impleme
     }
   }
 
+  public static final long DEFAULT_MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_MS = 20 * C.MILLIS_PER_SECOND;
+
   private static final int BUFFER_SIZE_BYTES = 128 * 1024;
-  private static final long MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_US = 20 * C.MICROS_PER_SECOND;
 
   private final DataSpec manifestDataSpec;
   private final Parser<M> manifestParser;
@@ -86,6 +87,7 @@ public abstract class SegmentDownloader<M extends FilterableManifest<M>> impleme
   private final CacheKeyFactory cacheKeyFactory;
   @Nullable private final PriorityTaskManager priorityTaskManager;
   private final Executor executor;
+  private final long maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffUs;
 
   /**
    * The currently active runnables.
@@ -99,6 +101,24 @@ public abstract class SegmentDownloader<M extends FilterableManifest<M>> impleme
 
   private volatile boolean isCanceled;
 
+  /**
+   * @deprecated Use {@link SegmentDownloader#SegmentDownloader(MediaItem, Parser,
+   *     CacheDataSource.Factory, Executor, long)} instead.
+   */
+  @Deprecated
+  public SegmentDownloader(
+      MediaItem mediaItem,
+      Parser<M> manifestParser,
+      CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory,
+      Executor executor) {
+    this(
+        mediaItem,
+        manifestParser,
+        cacheDataSourceFactory,
+        executor,
+        DEFAULT_MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_MS);
+  }
+
   /**
    * @param mediaItem The {@link MediaItem} to be downloaded.
    * @param manifestParser A parser for manifests belonging to the media to be downloaded.
@@ -107,12 +127,16 @@ public abstract class SegmentDownloader<M extends FilterableManifest<M>> impleme
    * @param executor An {@link Executor} used to make requests for the media being downloaded.
    *     Providing an {@link Executor} that uses multiple threads will speed up the download by
    *     allowing parts of it to be executed in parallel.
+   * @param maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs The maximum difference of the start time of two
+   *     segments, up to which the segments (of the same URI) should be merged into a single
+   *     download segment, in milliseconds.
    */
   public SegmentDownloader(
       MediaItem mediaItem,
       Parser<M> manifestParser,
       CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory,
-      Executor executor) {
+      Executor executor,
+      long maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs) {
     checkNotNull(mediaItem.localConfiguration);
     this.manifestDataSpec = getCompressibleDataSpec(mediaItem.localConfiguration.uri);
     this.manifestParser = manifestParser;
@@ -123,6 +147,7 @@ public abstract class SegmentDownloader<M extends FilterableManifest<M>> impleme
     cacheKeyFactory = cacheDataSourceFactory.getCacheKeyFactory();
     priorityTaskManager = cacheDataSourceFactory.getUpstreamPriorityTaskManager();
     activeRunnables = new ArrayList<>();
+    maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffUs = Util.msToUs(maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs);
   }
 
   @Override
@@ -145,7 +170,7 @@ public abstract class SegmentDownloader<M extends FilterableManifest<M>> impleme
       // Sort the segments so that we download media in the right order from the start of the
       // content, and merge segments where possible to minimize the number of server round trips.
       Collections.sort(segments);
-      mergeSegments(segments, cacheKeyFactory);
+      mergeSegments(segments, cacheKeyFactory, maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffUs);
 
       // Scan the segments, removing any that are fully downloaded.
       int totalSegments = segments.size();
@@ -416,7 +441,8 @@ public abstract class SegmentDownloader<M extends FilterableManifest<M>> impleme
     }
   }
 
-  private static void mergeSegments(List<Segment> segments, CacheKeyFactory keyFactory) {
+  private static void mergeSegments(
+      List<Segment> segments, CacheKeyFactory keyFactory, long maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffUs) {
     HashMap<String, Integer> lastIndexByCacheKey = new HashMap<>();
     int nextOutIndex = 0;
     for (int i = 0; i < segments.size(); i++) {
@@ -425,7 +451,7 @@ public abstract class SegmentDownloader<M extends FilterableManifest<M>> impleme
       @Nullable Integer lastIndex = lastIndexByCacheKey.get(cacheKey);
       @Nullable Segment lastSegment = lastIndex == null ? null : segments.get(lastIndex);
       if (lastSegment == null
-          || segment.startTimeUs > lastSegment.startTimeUs + MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_US
+          || segment.startTimeUs > lastSegment.startTimeUs + maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffUs
           || !canMergeSegments(lastSegment.dataSpec, segment.dataSpec)) {
         lastIndexByCacheKey.put(cacheKey, nextOutIndex);
         segments.set(nextOutIndex, segment);
diff --git a/libraries/exoplayer_dash/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/dash/offline/DashDownloader.java b/libraries/exoplayer_dash/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/dash/offline/DashDownloader.java
index e3c4172728..73a59291b3 100644
--- a/libraries/exoplayer_dash/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/dash/offline/DashDownloader.java
+++ b/libraries/exoplayer_dash/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/dash/offline/DashDownloader.java
@@ -100,7 +100,30 @@ public final class DashDownloader extends SegmentDownloader<DashManifest> {
    */
   public DashDownloader(
       MediaItem mediaItem, CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory, Executor executor) {
-    this(mediaItem, new DashManifestParser(), cacheDataSourceFactory, executor);
+    this(
+        mediaItem,
+        new DashManifestParser(),
+        cacheDataSourceFactory,
+        executor,
+        DEFAULT_MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_MS);
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @deprecated Use {@link DashDownloader#DashDownloader(MediaItem, Parser,
+   *     CacheDataSource.Factory, Executor, long)} instead.
+   */
+  @Deprecated
+  public DashDownloader(
+      MediaItem mediaItem,
+      Parser<DashManifest> manifestParser,
+      CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory,
+      Executor executor) {
+    this(
+        mediaItem,
+        manifestParser,
+        cacheDataSourceFactory,
+        executor,
+        DEFAULT_MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_MS);
   }
 
   /**
@@ -113,13 +136,22 @@ public final class DashDownloader extends SegmentDownloader<DashManifest> {
    * @param executor An {@link Executor} used to make requests for the media being downloaded.
    *     Providing an {@link Executor} that uses multiple threads will speed up the download by
    *     allowing parts of it to be executed in parallel.
+   * @param maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs The maximum difference of the start time of two
+   *     segments, up to which the segments (of the same URI) should be merged into a single
+   *     download segment, in milliseconds.
    */
   public DashDownloader(
       MediaItem mediaItem,
       Parser<DashManifest> manifestParser,
       CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory,
-      Executor executor) {
-    super(mediaItem, manifestParser, cacheDataSourceFactory, executor);
+      Executor executor,
+      long maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs) {
+    super(
+        mediaItem,
+        manifestParser,
+        cacheDataSourceFactory,
+        executor,
+        maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs);
     baseUrlExclusionList = new BaseUrlExclusionList();
   }
 
diff --git a/libraries/exoplayer_hls/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/hls/offline/HlsDownloader.java b/libraries/exoplayer_hls/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/hls/offline/HlsDownloader.java
index 777694e9f6..7c82bee608 100644
--- a/libraries/exoplayer_hls/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/hls/offline/HlsDownloader.java
+++ b/libraries/exoplayer_hls/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/hls/offline/HlsDownloader.java
@@ -89,7 +89,30 @@ public final class HlsDownloader extends SegmentDownloader<HlsPlaylist> {
    */
   public HlsDownloader(
       MediaItem mediaItem, CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory, Executor executor) {
-    this(mediaItem, new HlsPlaylistParser(), cacheDataSourceFactory, executor);
+    this(
+        mediaItem,
+        new HlsPlaylistParser(),
+        cacheDataSourceFactory,
+        executor,
+        DEFAULT_MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_MS);
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @deprecated Use {@link HlsDownloader#HlsDownloader(MediaItem, Parser, CacheDataSource.Factory,
+   *     Executor, long)} instead.
+   */
+  @Deprecated
+  public HlsDownloader(
+      MediaItem mediaItem,
+      Parser<HlsPlaylist> manifestParser,
+      CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory,
+      Executor executor) {
+    this(
+        mediaItem,
+        manifestParser,
+        cacheDataSourceFactory,
+        executor,
+        DEFAULT_MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_MS);
   }
 
   /**
@@ -102,13 +125,22 @@ public final class HlsDownloader extends SegmentDownloader<HlsPlaylist> {
    * @param executor An {@link Executor} used to make requests for the media being downloaded.
    *     Providing an {@link Executor} that uses multiple threads will speed up the download by
    *     allowing parts of it to be executed in parallel.
+   * @param maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs The maximum difference of the start time of two
+   *     segments, up to which the segments (of the same URI) should be merged into a single
+   *     download segment, in milliseconds.
    */
   public HlsDownloader(
       MediaItem mediaItem,
       Parser<HlsPlaylist> manifestParser,
       CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory,
-      Executor executor) {
-    super(mediaItem, manifestParser, cacheDataSourceFactory, executor);
+      Executor executor,
+      long maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs) {
+    super(
+        mediaItem,
+        manifestParser,
+        cacheDataSourceFactory,
+        executor,
+        maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs);
   }
 
   @Override
diff --git a/libraries/exoplayer_smoothstreaming/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/smoothstreaming/offline/SsDownloader.java b/libraries/exoplayer_smoothstreaming/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/smoothstreaming/offline/SsDownloader.java
index 4ca632271b..6d2ded5a4c 100644
--- a/libraries/exoplayer_smoothstreaming/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/smoothstreaming/offline/SsDownloader.java
+++ b/libraries/exoplayer_smoothstreaming/src/main/java/androidx/media3/exoplayer/smoothstreaming/offline/SsDownloader.java
@@ -93,7 +93,26 @@ public final class SsDownloader extends SegmentDownloader<SsManifest> {
             .build(),
         new SsManifestParser(),
         cacheDataSourceFactory,
-        executor);
+        executor,
+        DEFAULT_MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_MS);
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * @deprecated Use {@link SsDownloader#SsDownloader(MediaItem, Parser, CacheDataSource.Factory,
+   *     Executor, long)} instead.
+   */
+  @Deprecated
+  public SsDownloader(
+      MediaItem mediaItem,
+      Parser<SsManifest> manifestParser,
+      CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory,
+      Executor executor) {
+    this(
+        mediaItem,
+        manifestParser,
+        cacheDataSourceFactory,
+        executor,
+        DEFAULT_MAX_MERGED_SEGMENT_START_TIME_DIFF_MS);
   }
 
   /**
@@ -106,13 +125,22 @@ public final class SsDownloader extends SegmentDownloader<SsManifest> {
    * @param executor An {@link Executor} used to make requests for the media being downloaded.
    *     Providing an {@link Executor} that uses multiple threads will speed up the download by
    *     allowing parts of it to be executed in parallel.
+   * @param maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs The maximum difference of the start time of two
+   *     segments, up to which the segments (of the same URI) should be merged into a single
+   *     download segment, in milliseconds.
    */
   public SsDownloader(
       MediaItem mediaItem,
       Parser<SsManifest> manifestParser,
       CacheDataSource.Factory cacheDataSourceFactory,
-      Executor executor) {
-    super(mediaItem, manifestParser, cacheDataSourceFactory, executor);
+      Executor executor,
+      long maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs) {
+    super(
+        mediaItem,
+        manifestParser,
+        cacheDataSourceFactory,
+        executor,
+        maxMergedSegmentStartTimeDiffMs);
   }
 
   @Override