‘Next episode in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…’ Oops, it looks like we’ll just have to watch another episode as well.
Netflix seeks to lull its viewers into an uninterrupted state of ‘one more episode’ to keep them going until they finish a season or an entire show, only to realize that they just watched ten hours of television. One would think that they have the ability to make a conscious decision over what they are watching, how much they are watching, and when they are watching, yet 70% – 80% of the shows that the viewers watch are found through Netflix’s recommendation system and once you start watching, it is hard to stop. Which to an extent means the viewers are not making the decision about the content they watch, Netflix is.
To curate and give the user the best possible recommendations, the algorithm considers the user’s search history, viewing history, rating of previously watched titles and so much more. Every action, every search, and every ‘remind me’ that is made by the viewers is recorded. The behavioral data is a goldmine for Netflix. Through a detailed tagging system and grouping, the viewers into ‘taste communities’ Netflix recommends content that they know the viewers will watch thus, leading them to binge-watch season after season and show after show.
Netflix has perfected the art of producing binge-able content. In fact, putting all episodes of a season online at once provides the user the open advantage to binge a show in one sitting. With features such as ‘skip intro’ or ‘the next episode’ which results in removing the opening and ending credits, instills the anxiety in the viewer to skip to the next and next episode, automatically looping the viewer in the unconscious habit of binge-watching without even realizing it.
References:
kiruthika (2022). How Netflix uses Machine Learning to keep you up till 3 AM. – upGrad Campus. [online] upGrad Campus. Available at: https://upgradcampus.com/blog/how-netflix-uses-machine-learning-to-keep-you-up-till-3-am/ [Accessed 12 Nov. 2022].
Mareike Jenner (2018), ‘Introduction: Netflix and the Renvention of Television’, ‘Introduction: Binge Watching Netflix’, Netflix and the Reinvention of Television, pp. 1-31, 109-118.
Redaktor (2022). Netflix recommendation system: How it works – RecoAI. [online] RecoAI. Available at: https://recoai.net/netflix-recommendation-system-how-it-works/ [Accessed 12 Nov. 2022].
Panchmi Aswani – 12/11/2022
Digital Audiovisual Media Class Blog 
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