There's no denying Netflix has changed the way we watch television, but as with any world-conquering
corporation, there's some less-than-ideal stuff going on behind the scenes.
Your favorite source of binge-worthy content may feel like a digital friend, but make no
mistake: the streaming giant doesn't always have your best interests in mind.
Here's a quick look at the shady side of Netflix.
Review switcheroo
Sorry, but Netflix doesn't care what you really think about its buddy-cop orc epic Bright,
or your desperate demand for another season of cake fails on Nailed It!
"Your Trump looks like the stress has really gotten to him."
In case you're out of the loop, as of August 2018, Netflix has not only killed its written
user review feature, they've also deleted every old user review written in the last
decade, in a snap, like a more thorough Thanos.
Netflix tells CNET it got rid of written reviews because fewer people were using them, they
were desktop-only, and written reviews never really factored into recommendations anyway.
Only the current thumbs-up or thumbs-down system and the old "one-to-five stars" rating
system ever really influenced what's offered up to users, with a complicated algorithm
behind it all deducing the kind of content you like.
Bottom line: It's your viewing behavior, not your opinions, that Netflix really latches
onto.
The conspiracy-minded may also see this move as a way to hide negative reviews of Netflix
Originals.
Regardless, if you enjoyed reading other user reviews or writing your own, you're out of
luck.
Netflix giveth, and Netflix taketh away.
Subtitle shadiness
In 2012, Netflix was caught using pirated, fan-made subtitles for some of its Finnish
content.
As file-sharing news site TorrentFreak notes, unauthorized subtitles are considered a violation
of copyright, and individuals running sites that offer them as downloads are subject to
fines and possible jail time.
One of the shows Netflix was caught using so-called "fansubs" with was the sci-fi series
Andromeda, which was pulled from the service while Netflix investigated how they ended
up in use, complete with an on-screen credit to the fans responsible!
Caption concerns
In 2011, the National Association of the Deaf sued Netflix for not offering closed-captions
with most of their movies and TV shows.
According to CNET, the lawsuit was a last resort after years of appeals to Netflix asking
them to make their content easily accessible to the roughly 36 million Americans who are
either hard of hearing or deaf.
By 2018, things were getting better on that front, but viewers started tweeting that the
quality of some Netflix captioning was so bad that it ruined entire shows.
As the Telegraph reports, it started when one subscriber tweeted about how horrible
the captions for Queer Eye were, with altered language, censored profanity, and huge chunks
of dialogue missing.
Netflix responded with promises to investigate and to do better in the future, but the Guardian
says their poor job at closed captioning has become a symbol for the need to change media
accessibility laws.
After all, it's not just about captioning: When Netflix released Marvel's Daredevil in
2015, it initially failed to offer up a descriptive audio track for the blind, which is a weird
omission, considering it's a show about a blind superhero.
Prices up, selection down
Price hikes are the way of the world, and Netflix is no different.
In early 2018, the world's most valuable media company announced prices would soon rise again.
"That is gonna be quite a burden on whoever's password I'm using."
USA Today reported that it's definitely not going to be the last time customers see their
rates increase, either, but here's the kicker: You're getting fewer choices for that higher
rate.
Quartz and Cinemablend reports reveal that selection has dropped significantly in recent
years, with available movies down to around 4,000 from 6,500 in 2016.
Bottom line?
Netflix is charging you more and giving you less.
Binge enablers
Netflix essentially invented binge-watching, and the streaming king pays a staggering amount
of money to make sure binge-worthy content sticks around on the service.
Vulture says Netflix is known for forking over as much as $750,000 per episode for some
of the biggest shows on offer, such as Mad Men and Breaking Bad.
Not only is Netflix willing to spend an absurd amount of money to keep you hooked on high-quality
content, the streamer even tried encouraging kids to binge by offering them rewards in
the form of collectible digital patches.
Netflix started testing the program on select titles in March 2018, but soon pulled the
plug.
Kids were awarded patches for watching certain shows, but collecting the patches didn't unlock
any new content or otherwise change the streaming experience.
London School of Economics professor Sonia Livingstone says this gamification of TV isn't
exactly healthy.
Livingstone told the Telegraph,
"It's not clear that their innovation is in children's best interests, and given parental
concerns about screen time, is unlikely to be welcomed by parents."
Netflix put a stop to this shadiness, but who knows what the future will hold.
Guess we'll just have to watch and find out.