Hard to find new releases on Netflix

[Donna]

I do not like the new way new releases are displayed on Netflix. It makes it very hard to find the latest releases. I have to go to blockbusters website to find all the new releases then come back to netflix and add them to my queue. This is really annoying and I don't understand why they changed it when the old way was far better. If there is anyone out there that feels the same way, let Netflix that this format needs to be changed.

[Knaldskalle]

On the new "New Releases" page (the one with all the sliders) you can set the drop-down menu to display the latest releases.

Unnecessarily complicated? Yes. On purpose? You betcha. Netflix is doing this to reduce the pressure on new releases, based on the idea that if you can't find it you can't add it to your queue. Then when the "shine" of the new movie has worn off, they'll present it to you as "new".

[Cheryl]

I think people who expect new releases of popular movies to be available are using the wrong rental service.

[Knaldskalle]

Wow, I first read that as mental...

[ejaal]

Guys n Gals
Finding Netflix new releases is very easy. Just go to http://ejaal.net
You can also browse the New Releases RSS feed, and Add movies to your queue directly as well.

[Knaldskalle]

*slaps forehead*

Oh yeah, why didn't we think of that? Almost all the new releases on a third-party website... So much easier than www.netflix.com/AllNewReleases.

[ejaal]

If someone just wants to see "popular movies", its very difficult to find them on a New Releases page, mixed in with everything else. Every week, between 50 and 100 DVDs get released, but most people are only interested in catching the one or two that were box office hits.

Believe it or not, it is very tiring to hunt around 5 different sites trying to figure out exactly what is worth watching before you rent it. That's what http://ejaal.net does, it gives you a short-list of the best of Hollywood, but if you still want the complete list with movie summaries, you have that too.

[Knaldskalle]

Sooo... Tell me again why I should go to a third-party website? On Netflix I can get the works.

Who determines what is a popular new release? Netflix can determine popularity based on how many people queue it, but how do you do it? And what about the stuff that isn't "the best of Hollywood" but the best of independent or the best of foreign?

I find "selective" lists of new releases annoying (especially the ones that don't tell you it's only a selection) and, honestly, yours seems particularly selective. Only 1 worthwhile movie coming out this week? Seriously? And only 2 next week? That's my take on your front page, I haven't felt compelled to explore the site further.

[ejaal]

Knalds, glad to have an honest discussion. I am sure you have your own views, and I respect that. Ok, let's take your objections one at a time:

1) Why third-party website: In your comment a few rows above you yourself admit Netflix does not make it easy for people to find new releases. It is not in their interest for everyone to add the most popular new releases to their queue. That in itself justifies a 3rd party site. Remember, the 3rd party site doesn't take anything away from Netflix, it just adds to the ease of use for Netflix members and improves the customer experience. Not convinced yet? Take a look at http://developer.netflix.com/ Netflix itself realizes they will not be able to satisfy everyone all the time and so make an API available for other site developers to provide Netflix content in their own formats. 3rd party sites such as Rotten Tomatoes or New York Times are the biggest and most prominent users of such APIs, and the list keeps growing.

2) What determines popularity? I agree, everyone has their own tastes. The Netflix rating system is great because it is based on a collective user rating. In my case, I use box office rank. Remember, my purpose is to shortlist box office hits and I am picking only those that made it to the top 20 for any given week when they were in theaters. Someone else can come along and create their own list of the best indies or foreign films, or whatever takes their fancy.

3) Selective lists: I've already explained why you only see a few movies for each week. I agree the site doesnt explain how the selection is made, but its a work in progress. As more content gets added, I will also put in something to say what makes the cut.

New Releases and throttling have always been hot button issues, and will continue to be so till streaming video becomes a reality for most customers. Till then 3rd party sites will continue to fill the gap, one way or another.

[Knaldskalle]

I'm well aware of the release of the Netflix API (we're Netflix junkies over here, of course we know that kinda thing!) and I think it's a great idea and I think that there are people out there who can make very impressive stuff with the data.

instantwatcher.com is an example where they provide information to users that Netflix doesn't, even though Netflix has it: Each IW title has an expiration date. (Personally I find instantwatcher to have become a little overwhelming lately, but it's still a really good site.)

Feedflix is an example where the data from Netflix is being used creatively, to give people some idea of what they pay for each rental and when they're holding on to their discs "too long". It's an ingenious use of Netflix's data, even though I suspect that Netflix isn't too pleased with that particular use.

Those two are examples of third-part sites where you as user can get something you can't get on netflix.com. That - to me - is a good reason to use third-party sites.

And what does ejaal.net offer? A selection of titles that are recent releases. For this week, the only title is Taken. On netflix.com/AllNewReleases (ANR) they have something like 87 titles. In other words, ejaal.net doesn't actually offer me anything I can't get on netflix.com - at least not yet.

ANR is also subdivided into genres, so if I know I have no interest in "Music and Musicals" I can just ignore that section and concentrate on "Sports & Fitness". ejaal,net doesn't offer me that possibility. Both because genres aren't "sortable" and because there aren't any titles from the "sports & fitness" genres.

What ejaal.net does have is a list of titles that go further back than just this week, and that's a good thing and the true (only?) strength of your site. Netflix doesn't offer "last week's releases" the same way ejaal.net does, but under the "sliders" I can pick "Released in the last month" and pretty much cover that ground - if I can tolerate those damn sliders and I can't, I hate them. So on that point ejaal.net wins.

Using box office as a measure of popularity is not a bad idea. But it's hard to "remember" that your purpose is to shortlist hits when you haven't stated it anywhere! It's a perfectly legitimate purpose, but at least say it somewhere. I can understand your urge to promote your site (I would do the same), but when you tell people "Finding Netflix new releases is very easy. Just go to http://ejaal.net" you are misrepresenting your site as something more than it is.

If your goal with ejaal.net is to fill a gap in the "Netflix experience" I would go with filling the gap between "last week's releases" and "upcoming releases" that Netflix is not good at. But your site requires a lot more work before it really fills that gap.

In all fairness I am not the target audience for a site that shortlists hits, I want to know the non-hits and I want as much information as possible about each title - almost the opposite of your goal so keep that in mind when reading my comments.

[ejaal]

Knalds, I appreciate your reasoned critique. Will definitely keep your suggestions in mind when enhancing the site. I agree about the "requires a lot more work" part :)

[jcranma]

Perhaps you could expand your main page to include those titles who made the top 20 to 30 weekly charts of say NY, Chicago, LA. As it is, your main page is rather limited with only one title listed for last Tuesday's new release. Some indies and films from abroad are not shown in all of the US.

[dhchoi]

Hi Knaldskalle

I'm glad you find InstantWatcher useful. Is it becoming overwhelming? If you let me know how so, I might be able to do something about it.

Dan Choi (instantwatcher.com's creator)