NinjaDeathSlap said:
Well that's great for you, and in my conclusion I said myself that it's up to us to put in the effort to broaden our horizons. The trouble is, many of the 'hidden gems' are more hidden than ever before. If something's not in the top selections for any of the categories displayed on Netflix's front page, then people who aren't specifically looking for it just won't find it. Hell, most people probably won't even scroll through more than the first few categories before they find something they'll settle on. That doesn't make them "mindless sheep", regardless of how sad you or I might find it.
How is it harder to find shows now then it was when you had to randomly flip through TV channels to find something. No matter what spin you put on it, there is a better chance of finding hidden gems now because of the availability of these shows. If you got off work at 7 and the hidden gem show started at 630, you would NEVER find it. And I disagree with your assessment that most people will only scroll through the first few categories and decide something. I've joked with friends before that my 'movie' before bed was scrolling through the Netflix library trying to find something to watch. They had all done this as well, and I am assuming we aren't the only people in the world who have done this. I think a very small percentage of people will miss out on shows because they follow Netflix's top 10 movies or suggested for you, and those people are mindless sheep.
You just named one show that already benefited from a large and vocal audience long before online streaming became as big as it is. In a world where online viewing may come to completely dominate the market, new shows won't get the same head start.
Indeed, it would be stupid to make such a sweeping absolutist argument. I guess it's fortunate then, that that's not remotely what I said. I'm not predicting a world where the sit-com will be extinct five years from now. However, these shows are going to find it harder than before to build up a following unless both the viewers and the service providers put the effort in to support them where they deserve to be supported. I just want to make sure that happens, because it's not unheard of for entertainment markets to just decide that whole genre's aren't worth their investment any more based on shoddy, swallow analysis. Just look at what happened to Survival Horror in the AAA game market.
The second How I Met Your Mother was on Netflix it was watched by millions of people, including myself. I notice how you ignore my other sitcom that has been very successful that came out this year, which is The Unbreakable Kimmy Schimdt. I think as long as their is an audience willing to watch, Netflix will continue producing there own amazing shows. Eventually, others will start producing shows just for Netflix or Hulu. I think Netflix realizes why they are the most popular streaming service, and it is in variety of Genres. They have everything from kids shows to ecchi anime to serious political thrillers to silly sitcoms. Netflix needs that variety to remain as dominant as it is today. If they lose it, other sites will pop up that can do it better.
You bring up the AAA industry like it is relevant in this conversation, but the reason the AAA industry feels safe with its actions is that there are extremely high barriers to entry into the video game industry, whereas starting a website has almost no barriers to entry. Which is why almost every website today has surpassed someone before it. Most of the AAA companies have been around for decades at this point, with the occasional new ones popping up.
On it's own, nothing. However, when there are dozens that you're constantly being bombarded with and that cannot possibly all be given a chance, it gets a little frustrating, not to mention passively exclusionary.
So what is the alternative. Would you rather have LESS movies and shows available? Because I think there would be a lot of people that disagree with that statement. You have to choose which shows are important enough to watch, or which ones your friends watch and suggest. I am watching Ergo Proxy right now, even though it wasn't on the top of my list for things to watch because one of my friends suggested it. It's turning out to be a great decision as Ergo Proxy is an amazing show. I will never be able to watch all the Anime I want, and it is just something I've accepted. So I go through my list trying to decide the best ones. I would rather have too much choice then too little any day of the week though.
And I'm sure, when you bother to download material instead of simply streaming it, you're always diligent in backing up those files. Not that you need to. After all, digital data getting lost or corrupted is completely unheard of, right?
Personally, I do backup all my media, but part of that is because I get a new computer every year or two. So do hundreds of thousands of other PC users. One of my friends downloads shows and movies and music all day 24/7 just to put them onto his many backup hard drives just so he can have them. Many people do similar things. With so many people doing this, there is next to a 0% chance that everyone will all lose their data of some show at the same time. Since it can all be copied, all it means is one person has to still have that data in order for it to be distributed again.
I makes me sad that you think that was the point I was making. After all, I did use rather a lot of words to make it clear that I, in fact, was not doing that. The least you could do is read them...
If the kind of situation I was outlining in that part of the article does not apply to you, then feel free to discard it as irrelevant, and good luck with your Marine Economics and girlfriend, that you mention in a way that sounds not at all defensive and compensatory.
I spend 90% of my time alone. As do many others. Explain to me WHY this is bad for me, don't just say it like it is some accepted fact. You said in your article:
However, if the above applies to you on a not-infrequent basis, then you know who you are, and you should know it's not good for you.
Why is it not good for me? Explain it to me. Because it sure seems like you are telling me what is good or not good for me in my own personal life without knowing me. The reason why I brought up those particulars was to show that regardless of the way I prefer to spend my freetime, I can still be successful in social situations, and for some reason you called them defensive and compensatory. I also don't know what Marine Economics is, although I assume you were trying to make a joke. I, in general, spend about 70% of my day alone, either watching TV Shows/movies, playing video games, doing schoolwork or reading. AND I LOVE IT. My girlfriend and I live together, and she works a lot so it works out great in terms of getting time to myself. I know plenty of people like me who are in similar situations that prefer spending there free time alone. We are constantly told that being 'anti-social' is somehow bad. Some people feel that desire to go hang out with people, which happens to me every once in a while, and guess what, I go hang out with people. Just because that desire to be social is the accepted norm, doesn't mean that it is bad to be in the minority.
Ultimately, it comes down to one very important Economic assumption. "Individuals always act in a manner which will maximize their perceived net benefit". Regardless of whether or not you agree or disagree, you have no place to say binge watching is bad for us. You could've titled this article "Five Reasons 'Binge-Watching' Is Bad For Me" and it would've been perfectly acceptable.
