Netflix today launched a new social recommendation feature to let its users suggest movies and TV shows to their Facebook friends. It is available starting today on the Netflix website, iOS, PS3, Xbox, and many set-top boxes and smart TVs, though the company says it will be adding additional platforms “in the coming months.” It’s worth emphasizing that the feature is only available when you finish watching a movie or episode. This should, in theory, reduce the chance of being spammed with recommendations by your friends
You can now link your Netflix and Facebook accounts without every friend on your social network finding out about your High School Musical obsession. Netflix is rolling out new social features today that give the video service’s subscribers more control over how much of their viewing they share over Facebook and with whom, a departure from the current experience of sharing everything. By giving viewers more control, Netflix hopes more of their 50 million users worldwide will connect their accounts with Facebook. For Netflix, connecting with Facebook allows friends to recommend videos to one another. That’s a more compelling way to find something to watch than the algorithm recommendations from Netflix or randomly typing titles or actor names into the search bar, Cameron Johnson, the company’s director of product innovation, said in a phone interview. “For us, it’s about trying to find a new social model that works for on demand television,” Johnson said. “Most people already tell their friends about TV shows or movies they like, we’re trying to make that experience seamless and quick within Netflix.”
