UPDATED: Netflix's new thumbs up/thumbs down rating has finally arrived, and so far, it seems pretty good. As we explained earlier, the new system is measured against the likes and dislikes of people who've watched and rated similar content to you, giving you a percentage score for how likely you are to enjoy a particular show or movie.
Cleverly, the system only gives you a percentage score for things you have yet to watch, which should result in you giving more honest scores for the content once you've watched it.
Original news story continues below:
Netflix vice president of product Todd Yellin has announced that the streaming service will replace its star rating system in April in favour of a thumbs up/thumbs down method.
“Five stars feels very yesterday now,” said Yellin in a media briefing today (as reported by The Verge), further explaining that the company is “spending many billions of dollars on the titles we’re producing and licensing, and with these big catalogs, that just adds a challenge”.
The streaming giant began beta testing the ‘thumbs’ system with subscribers around the world late last year and saw a 200% increase in user ratings, solidifying Netflix’s decision to replace the current star rating system.
Furthermore, Netflix will also implement a new ‘percent matching’ system which will provide users with a personalised percentage rating under each title. It’s said this information will give viewers an idea of how likely they are to enjoy certain TV shows and movies.
“What’s more powerful: you telling me you would give five stars to the documentary about unrest in the Ukraine; that you’d give three stars to the latest Adam Sandler movie; or that you’d watch the Adam Sandler movie 10 times more frequently?” said Yellin, further adding that “What you do versus what you say you like are different things.”
