After mulling for an extended period of time, Netflix has finally decided to replace its existing five-star rating system. The on-demand video streaming giant is taking the YouTube route and will soon allow users to rate programs using a thumbs up, thumbs down system. This revelation came to light during a recent press event held at the company’s Los Gatos headquarters.
The company now believes that the star-based rating system has become out of date. It needed a better, more intuitive and interactive experience, which the thumbs-based system provides to the user. This means you would no longer have to spend time mulling over the rating you’d like to assign to a movie or TV show. Thumbs up and thumbs down simplifies the task and we’re more acquainted with the said system — which is synonymous to them liking the program they rated a thumbs up.
Talking about the said change, Netflix’s vice president of product Todd Yellin said,
Five stars feels very yesterday now. We’re spending many billions of dollars on the titles we’re producing and licensing, and with these big catalogs, that just adds a challenge.
(Now, this system) really projects what you think you want to tell the world. But we want to move to a system where it’s really clear, when members rate, that it’s for them, and to keep on making the Netflix experience better and better.
He further continued to add that Netflix started beta testing the thumbs up or down rating system with several new users back in 2016. And they noticed that viewers were more inclined to rating the program they just watched using the same. It also witnessed close to a 200 percent increase in the number of ratings logged over the said test duration. This incited them to go forward and replace the star-based system for good.
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In addition, Netflix is also finally introducing another new feature called ‘percentage match’ into the mix. This feature, which shows a percentage of how likely you’re to enjoy a program on the platform, has also been under beta testing for quite some time. This will be used to better analyze your content preference and provide personalized recommendations. Thus, Yellin also added that this feature is not similar to how dating sites match users.
The on-demand video streaming platform further plans to match globally based on users with similar interests and viewing habits. It also said, during the press event, that matched content will not be restricted to regional interests. Netflix said it has found that users are perfectly willing to watch TV shows and movies from other markets — dubbed or with subtitles.
If you’re already checking your Netflix app to see if the aforementioned feature has arrived for you or not, then don’t fret. Netflix says that both, the rating as well as matching features will start rolling out globally in April. So, better recommendation and more original content, let it flow towards me.
