By the end of the month, you’ll no longer be able to post wordy reviews on Netflix’s website because they’ve ‘seen declining usage over time.’ By mid-August, they’ll be wiped from the site completely.
The streaming service is axing written user reviews of TV shows and movies, as CNET first reported. By the end of the month, you’ll no longer be able to post wordy reviews of content on Netflix’s website. By mid-August, you won’t be able to read them there, either.
In a Friday email to PCMag, a Netflix spokeswoman said the feature was only available on Netflix’s website – not the company’s apps – and “has seen declining usage over time.” She added that Netflix has already “notified members who have used the feature recently.”
The change comes after Netflix last year replaced five-star ratings with a thumbs up or down system. That system will remain in place.
“Given that star ratings have traditionally been used to indicate quality in entertainment, members were sometimes confused about how to think about rating a title,” Netflix told PCMag at the time. The thumbs up/thumbs down system is more straightforward, enabling members to more easily tell the company what type of titles they like, and don’t like.
Written reviews on the site had no impact on personalized recommendations, Netflix siad.
Meanwhile, Italian blog Tutto Android reported this week that Netflix is testing a $16.99 per month “Ultra” plan offering HDR video, HD audio, and four concurrent streams. This rumored Ultra plan could mean a decrease in the number of concurrent streams on the company’s existing Standard and Premium plans.
