The internet has changed a lot in the past few years, and so has Netflix. However, as streaming becomes a more competitive industry, the company is rolling out a new feature that will let users give content a one or two thumbs up rating, depending on how much they like what they just saw.
Prior to 2017, Netflix featured a 1 to 5 star-based rating system that allowed subscribers to appraise content in a more nuanced way, however, that mechanism was dropped due to the company’s own judgment determining that it was too overwhelming for users. These types of metrics are crucial for business, as the simpler positive or negative reaction button was deemed as a better way to offer viewers more content and collect info that helps Netflix decide on what type of content it should invest in.
As a way to aid these efforts, Netflix will add the “two thumbs up” function so users can signal when they really enjoyed something. As reported by The Verge, this is so the service can continue to be “the place where it’s easiest to choose something to watch.” The company’s official statement indicates that there’s never been a wider selection of content to choose from, so Director of Product Innovation and Personalization Experiences Christine Doig-Cardet admitted this feature had been highly requested by users who felt the binary reaction was not enough.
In its earlier days, Netflix would even let users submit brief written reviews on their website that were accompanied by a star rating. However, that was scrapped years before the thumbs up or down method came to be. The new reaction button is now being rolled out and is already available on Netflix's browser, Smart TVs, and both mobile apps on Android and iOS.
For years Netflix has been fine-tuning its recommendations algorithm in order to seduce viewers to spend more time watching content they might enjoy, but many users may feel that is not always the case, and this feature might help separate something like Arcane from that one movie that wasn't bad at all. Like most tech companies, Netflix collects valuable data that helps personalize the platform’s experience for each individual, even taking into consideration predictive algorithms that try to guess users’ interests based on their age, gender, location, or even their ethnicity.
One could guess there’s still a lot of work to be done on such protocols though, as Netflix is often pretty trigger-happy when it comes to canceling shows that don't perform quite like Bridgerton, even shortly after they have been released. Perhaps it's likely these same methods have veered the company to invest in more anime or game-related content like Netflix's upcoming Tekken series.
Source: The Verge