What just happened? Netflix announced this week that a double thumbs-up button is coming. The new feature is the result of user feedback and months of testing. The move is a half-step back from when Netflix switched from star ratings to thumbs a few years ago.
A double thumbs up button is coming to Netflix's TV, web, and mobile apps. Clicking it influences Netflix's content recommendation algorithm more strongly than the regular thumb up and thumb down buttons the streaming service has used since 2017.
Netflix says it's spent almost a year testing the new button. Subscribers had told the company that the existing ratings buttons were too binary. They wanted to show that they didn't just like a program, but loved it.
A heart might seem like the most obvious symbol for indicating favorites, but Netflix tested it against the double thumbs up for months, and the latter ultimately prevailed. It complements the thumb buttons that are already there, and might be more globally recognizable than a heart. Other candidates included applause, shooting star, and party popper icons.
In 2017, Netflix replaced its five-star rating system with the simpler thumbs. Giving viewers three ratings buttons instead could be a good middle-ground between two which could feel limiting, and five which could seem ambiguous.