Netflix Is Finally Adding a Streaming Roulette Feature As It Clinches 200 Million Subscribers (gizmodo.com) 32
Netflix has officially amassed 200 million subscribers, sending shares soaring 12%. As it continues to compete with rival services, Netflix says it's preparing to roll out a new feature that will allow the service to pick a title based on a user's preferences rather than requiring them to browse for something to watch. Gizmodo reports: Netflix said in its fourth-quarter shareholders letter released Tuesday that it managed to secure 8.5 million more paid subscriptions to help the streaming giant cross the 200 million mark. All told, the company added a total of 37 million paid subscriptions during 2020, no doubt helped by the surge in TV viewing and streaming that resulted from lockdown orders and quarantine measures amid the coronavirus pandemic. For some context, Netflix says memberships were up 23 percent from the previous year in the fourth quarter.
Even with the pandemic significantly delaying production timelines and release dates, Netflix says it's still on track to release at least one original film every week of 2021. Plus, the company said it has a staggering 500-plus titles either in post-production or ready to hit its service. Most surprising, though, was Netflix's claim that it is "every close" to being cash-flow positive and no longer needs to raise external financing. Additionally, the company plans "on repaying the bond at maturity out of cash on hand, as we are currently well above our minimum cash needs."
Even with the pandemic significantly delaying production timelines and release dates, Netflix says it's still on track to release at least one original film every week of 2021. Plus, the company said it has a staggering 500-plus titles either in post-production or ready to hit its service. Most surprising, though, was Netflix's claim that it is "every close" to being cash-flow positive and no longer needs to raise external financing. Additionally, the company plans "on repaying the bond at maturity out of cash on hand, as we are currently well above our minimum cash needs."
Final form (Score:5, Insightful)
No need for any thought, initiative or decision making ever again.
Great.
Re: (Score:3)
That already exists... Youtube Autoplay. Though you'd at least expect Netflix to play shit in sequence* rather than random order.
*where sequence is defined by whatever intern uploaded the files
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Youtube autoplay is a way for youtube to boost the views of specific content, and in youtubes case it is because that specific content has advertisements. Of course they are still trying to do a "good job" at your preferences because as been said, they want to boost views. Youtube also doesnt seem very hostile to ad blocking, and may not even steer you towards monetized content if you are actively ad blocking.
What netflix wants is the same ability to boost view
Alternative Take (Score:1)
What netflix wants is the same ability to boost views, but not for content that has advertisements, but instead for content that they are trying to boost the value of (their own productions
What good is it to Netflix if view numbers are artificially increased, when they are the only ones that see the numbers? Talk about lying to yourself....
I would posit instead that what Netflix wants is data, and higher engagement - they will either be feeding you random stuff they hope you like to keep you watching longe
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Perhaps when people are given two terrible options, they're going to pick terrible?
Re: Final form (Score:2)
Proof (Score:2)
that online platforms know entirely too much about you.
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I mean as a general rule yes online platforms know a lot, but this is Netflix knowing about you based on what you watch (and maybe very occasionally rate) on Netflix.
It's in the terms of : You watched shows X and Y, other people who watched X and Y also watched Z (probably much more advanced than that but not using any external data from what I understand).
If Netflix is to be believed, they do not onsell your data either https://help.netflix.com/legal... [netflix.com]
By all means, don't share too much online, but this is
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Based on their current recommendations, they know approximately as much about me as the best friend of the girl I grew up next door to and haven't spoken to in thirty years.
Somewhat on topic factoid (Score:2)
here's a feature: (Score:3)
Netflix knows I, and in all likelihood you, sit and walk through title after title and category after category. "Nup. Nup. Nup. *add to my list*. Nup. Nup." In this way I have developed a finely curated list of things I will never watch because at some point Netflix will silently remove them from the service. So then I'm back to, "Nup. Nup. Nup. *add to my list*. Nup. Nup." If you're going to remove shit from my list, a notification a couple of weeks in advance would be nice. Not this fucking content roulette bullshit. FFS.
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What they don't have is just a simple filterable interface where you can list all items in the catalogue that match certain search terms/tags and exclude/sort by last-watched, year, budget..
You know, things that are almost trivially indexable and which would allow people to quickly find something that they're interested in and haven't already watched and which aren't one of the thousand low-budget copy-cat versions of that thing.
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That feeling that maybe what I am looking for is one screen away is curated.
Netflix may know what I liked (Score:4, Insightful)
Netflix may know what I like based on my past history. But it can’t know what I want to see at this moment in time.
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Netflix "knows what you like" by genre. But it never seems to take production quality or writing into account. And yes what you feel like at the moment is definitely going to change.
One thing they don't seem to take into account, is stuff you have skipped over before. If I skipped over it before, I did not want to watch it. So why when I do shuffle-play does it get presented?
If I stopped in the middle of episode #1, I probably did not want to watch it.
Re: Netflix may know what I liked (Score:2)
Oh no ... (Score:2)
Netflix Is Finally Adding a Streaming Roulette Feature ...
Streaming Roulette actually sounds worse than Chat Roulette... [*shudder*]
Over 50,000 titles, yet (Score:4, Informative)
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I am not letting Netflix decide for me. never have, probably never will (except old age when I become senile).
There are two directions I go when I start Netflix on my TV:
1. Is there a newly released movie I might be interested in? (I browse manually, based on category)
2. I wan to watch X (where X is a movie title I want to watch).
If they don't have X, I close Netflix and open my PLEX app. If they have X, I will watch it.
Sometimes they have stuff on the list (related to point 1) which is not new but I someho
Netflix is stale (Score:2)
It feels exactly like the old video stores with even less of a selection to choose from. It just displays what I've already watched over and over again. Once in a while it will have a new release that may be worth watching. Of to the next streaming service to repeat the process then off to the torrents to get something to watch because it's not available through a streaming service. Now they will just feed the Matrix after every new release. Hey Netflix if I haven't watched it in the last year it very well
How is this new? (Score:2)
How is this a new feature? I've had the "Shuffle" feature on all my devices since sometime last year - October or November, maybe? Click the shuffle button, it plays an episode of a show it thinks you'd like.
Now, what would be more useful is "TV Mode". Take a list of shows I like and serve them to me in random order... that way I don't binge an entire season of something in a weekend, then forget what the show was about 363 days later when the next season appears.
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Now, what would be more useful is "TV Mode". Take a list of shows I like and serve them to me in random order... that way I don't binge an entire season of something in a weekend, then forget what the show was about 363 days later when the next season appears.
"TV Mode" would just keep showing you reruns, the same reruns as it shows me, because two for the price of one generalizes...
And while they're adding new features (Score:1)
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Netflix already recommends what I've watched. (Score:2)
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Yup. This is either going to shove down our throats the shows they want to promote, or set us into an endless loop of things we've already watched. My guess is it's the former more than the later, but there will likely be a bit of both at first while they "perfect" their "here's our new shit nobody wants, send it to the roulette crowd" algorithms.