Netflix is removing online reviews in August


Netflix is removing online reviews in August

You'll no longer be able to post written reviews as of July 30, and then in mid-August existing written reviews will be removed.

By KAITLIN BENZ JULY 5, 2018 3:28 PM PDT

The online reviews feature is only offered on the website and has seen declining usage over time, according to a spokesperson.

Netflix is removing a desktop-only feature this summer that allowed users to read and write reviews of TV shows and movies on its website. But the shutdown is coming in stages. People will no longer be able to write their feedback on a show, similar to a Yelp review of a restaurant, by July 30. And in mid-August, people will no longer be able to read existing user reviews on Netflix either.

"We have notified members who have used the feature recently," Netflix spokesperson Smita Saran said in an email Thursday.

This isn't the first time the company has changed a feature used to provide feedback on its offerings.

The streaming service used to allow people to rate programs with one to five stars. But, early last year, the company changed it to a simple thumbs up or thumbs down. Some people criticized the move as overly simplistic. Forbes contributor Paul Tassi said the new system was "the epitome of uselessness." Netflix, meanwhile, still uses the star-rating data and has said it has received more ratings under its thumbs-up-thumbs-down system.

Netflix's written reviews allowed users to explain why they doled out five stars, for instance, to Parks and Recreation. But they only ever appeared on Netflix's website, not its many apps, and a Netflix spokeswoman said the written reviews didn't influence the system Netflix used to recommend shows to you.

"This feature is only offered on the website and has seen declining usage over time," Saran said.

The current thumbs up or thumbs down system, which is completely independent from the written reviews, will remain after the changes.

This news comes at a time when Netflix is at its peak. This spring, the streaming service took the crown as the most valuable media company in the world and hit 125 million subscribers worldwide.

https://www.cnet.com/news/netflix-is-removing-online-reviews-in-august/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

BMW traps alleged thief by remotely locking him in car

BMW traps alleged thief by remotely locking him in car Stealer's Wheel? Seattle police department quotes "Watchmen" movie in a recap of the recent arrest. Tech Culture by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper December 4, 2016 5:00 PM PST It's maybe the most satisfying arrest we can imagine. Seattle police caught an alleged car thief by enlisting the help of car maker BMW to both track and then remotely lock the luckless criminal in the very car he was trying to steal. Jonah Spangenthal-Lee, deputy director of communications for the Seattle Police Department, posted a witty summary of the event on the SPD's blog on Wednesday. Turns out if you're inside a stolen car, it's perhaps not the best time to take a nap. "A car thief awoke from a sound slumber Sunday morning (Nov. 27) to find he had been remotely locked inside a stolen BMW, just as Seattle police officers were bearing down on him," Spangenthal-Lee wrote. The suspect found a ke...
Read more

Report: World’s 1st remote brain surgery via 5G network performed in China

World’s 1st remote brain surgery via 5G network performed in China Published time: 17 Mar, 2019 13:12 ·           A Chinese surgeon has performed the world’s first remote brain surgery using 5G technology, with the patient 3,000km away from the operating doctor. Dr. Ling Zhipei remotely implanted a neurostimulator into his patient’s brain on Saturday, Chinese state-run media  reports . The surgeon manipulated the instruments in the Beijing-based PLAGH hospital from a clinic subsidiary on the southern Hainan island, located 3,000km away. The surgery is said to have lasted three hours and ended successfully. The patient, suffering from Parkinson’s disease, is said to be feeling well after the pioneering operation. The doctor used a computer connected to the next-generation 5G network developed by Chinese tech giant Huawei. The new device enabled a near real-time connection, according to Dr. Ling.  “You barely feel that th...
Read more

New ATM's: withdraw money with veins in your finger

New cash machines: withdraw money with veins in your finger Cash machine technology that reads the pattern of finger veins is already available in Japan and Poland   By Telegraph Reporters 6:59PM BST 15 May 2014 Cash machines could soon be installed with devices that identify customers by reading the veins in their fingers. The technology is already being rolled out in Poland, where 1,730 cash machines will this year be installed with readers, negating the need for a debit card and Pin. Developed by Hitachi, the Japanese electronics firm, the machines read the patterns of the veins just below the surface of the skin on your finger using infra-red sensors. The light is partially absorbed by haemoglobin in the veins to capture a unique finger vein pattern profile, which is matched to a profile. The technology is used by Japanese banks and also in Turkey, offering “groundbreaking levels of accuracy and speed of authentication”, Hitachi said, which in t...
Read more