Seven things you may not know about Netflix

Friday, 15 February 2019

There's a reason the third season of Stranger Things is set at the height of summer in 1985, that was when summer moviegoing was arguably reaching fever pitch.

OPINION: Kiwis spend a lot of time watching movies and television shows on Netflix, with more than 1.2 million with access to the service.

Most of us just click the remote and start watching. But there are a few little-known facts about the popular app that changed the way we watch television.

ODD FIRST NAME

Netflix was originally called Kibble, which may have been inspired by co-founder Marc Randolph's love of dogs. Other options were Replay, Directpix and Luna.

The company almost ended up being called Blockbuster in 2000 after Netflix offered to sell itself to the movie rental giant for US$50 million but the offer was turned down - one of the worst business decisions ever made if you ask me.

**READ MORE:

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* The most-watched movies on Qantas flights for 2017

* We hardly watch TV at home anymore - the surprising ways we're viewing our shows

* Stranger Things: Has Netflix changed television for ever?**

NEW LOGO

Netflix recently unveiled a new logo animation that kind of looks like a special effect from a Star Trek movie.

It appeared this month and only features on recently released programmes made by Netflix, also known as its 'Originals' shows.

53 people watched A Christmas Prince every day for 18 days in a row.

IT'S POPULAR

Data released last year shows more Kiwis use Netflix than watch Sky TV, TV3 or TVNZ 2.

Its popularity is surging due to the constant stream of shows being added and also an increased uptake in ultrafast broadband and unlimited data caps, which make the service easier to access.

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings could have been the CEO of Kibble.

IT HAS COOL JOBS

Netflix employees watch a lot of television. First, they hire people who can translate English into other languages for subtitles.

They also hire people to 'tag' or categorise shows and movies. They add in dozens of data points such as names of actors and directors, and also write show descriptions.

Andy Serkis attends the Netflix 'Mowgli' Press Conference on December 10, 2018 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

IT CAN BE MEAN

While the company is shy about revealing how many people actually watched a show, it often reveals details about what viewers watch.

While it doesn't use names it's been criticised for being mean.

For example, it revealed that 53 people watched A Christmas Prince every day for 18 days in a row, and it also said a Kiwi watched the movie Grown Ups 331 times back-to-back.

LONG WAIT FOR NZ

Netflix's streaming service arrived in New Zealand in 2015, eight years after it launched in the United States. The company started in 1997 by posting out DVDs, a service it still does for about 3 million subscribers.

TIME TO CHOOSE

Despite the hundreds of movies and shows available, Netflix data shows that users spend only one to two minutes browsing for a title before choosing one, or giving up.