Netflix has revolutionised television.
Instead of digging out outdated tools like a ‘TV guide’, streaming video has meant you can watch whatever you want, whenever you want to. OK, in reality, it actually more often than not means just cycling through the new releases for half an hour, then just watching The Office for the billionth time.
One thing that is different to regular TV is the lack of adverts – that’s what you get for your €7-€10.99 a month.
But now viewers have reported seeing adverts popping up between shows. Now to be fair, these ads are for other Netflix shows, not for third-party products or services. But you can see how it must be annoying.
https://twitter.com/libbycwatson/status/1030507925490556929
https://twitter.com/blahsi/status/1030522285604696066
Thankfully, it seems it is just something Netflix are trialling, and the users that saw the trailers were just experience test ideas.
A spokesperson told IGN:
“At Netflix, we conduct hundreds of tests every year so we can better understand what helps members more easily find something great to watch.”
“A couple of years ago, we introduced video previews to the TV experience, because we saw that it significantly cut the time members spend browsing and helped them find something they would enjoy watching even faster. In this particular case, we are testing whether surfacing recommendations between episodes helps members discover stories they will enjoy faster.”
That’s good to know. Needless to say, if they did start making you watch adverts for Insatiable or some Ricky Gervais stand-up special before you can see Stranger Things, a lot of people would be very annoyed and might consider cancelling their subscriptions. So it looks like it is not happening any time soon.
Now, how about getting something to stop Netflix from always skipping the end credits music on films, and jumping straight to something else? That would be really appreciated.
