Netflix Us (Hearing Impaired) Down Memory Lane
Technology | Lisa A. Goldstein
Netflix Us Down Memory Lane
In the early days of closed captioning, I remember having to check each videotape for the CC symbol. Many times, I had to return the movie to the shelf because it wasn't there.
The Dark Ages are here again.
Two years ago, I wrote about Netflix's release of the Netflix Player by Roku, which streams movies over the Internet onto the TV, which of course didn't have captions or subtitles. A year ago, I reported that nothing had changed.
On April 15, however, Neil Hunt, the Chief Product Officer at Netflix, announced that Netflix enabled closed captioning for some TV episodes and movies that can be watched instantly on the PC or Mac. "Although it's a limited library of content with subtitles available - about 100 titles - we have now released the technology and we will be working to fill the library over time," Hunt wrote on the Netflix blog.
"We have similar technology working in the lab for some of our game console, Blu-ray, and DTV platforms, which will roll out in releases starting this fall, along with support for 5.1 audio," Hunt added. "It's a start, with much more to come. You can try it for yourself with most episodes of Lost Seasons 1-4."
At first, this news sounds great. Netflix is finally captioning its streaming content. But look closely. It's limited to the PC/Mac, there are only 100 titles, and apparently not everyone is happy with Lost. Check out a few of the posts on the Netflix blog:
Anonymous wrote, "I am deaf, but I ain't dumb! About 100 titles, huh? Each season of Lost has 25 episodes. Season 1 thru 4 has about 100 episodes. Do you mean to tell me that you've only subtitled/captioned one stupid show? Come on! At least when the new movies/releases are added to Netflix, please add the subtitles in. It shouldn't be that hard!"
Another person wrote, "I looked up Lost, and there's no way to tell that its streaming is captioned. It sounds to me you have to click on every item in your queue available for instant viewing and then play them to see if they're captioned. It's a step forward, but most of us don't have time to do this process. Before adding more, I'd add a searchable feature and 'cc' under the streaming details."
One family lamented the fact that the subtitles disappeared by episode 13, exacerbated by the fact that Lost is a show that is pointless to watch if the episodes are out of order.
Just like with Lost, there is no way to tell which of the 100 movies are captioned unless you click on every video to check. As many have been complaining, it's like looking for a needle in a haystack.
On the Facebook group, "Netflix Watch-Instantly Needs Closed Captions!", someone posted that they spoke with Netflix customer service, and after almost an hour, they got over 100 streaming titles that are closed captioned. The list is notably heavy with old movies, rather than new releases, which are the most popular titles being watched. "We're not second class citizens," someone posted on Facebook, "so it seems to me that Netflix should be ensuring that we have access to the titles that people are most interested in viewing now."
One Facebook post says, "You'll see posts all over the Netflix community forum and on other web sites where Netflix [lackeys] will tell you this 'inconvenience' of not subtitling its 'instant' content will be rectified by the end of 2010. What they don't realize is its not an 'inconvenience,' it's discrimination. I actually called and asked for a reduction in my monthly fee because we're unable to enjoy all of the streaming content. I was all but laughed at on the phone by the jovial representative who just spewed marketing propaganda at me about all the other great ways Netflix services me."
A comment on Netflix's blog says this is too little too late. This is just Netflix paying lip service to deaf/HOH customers. "Fact is, you've had 5 years to work on this. Five years we've been pleading for captioned streaming. And this is the best you can come up with? 100 titles? Yes, it will grow, but how long will we have to wait until all the streaming is captioned? And are these real captions or just subtitles? There's a big difference."
What's interesting, as one person points out on the blog, is that competitors are already ahead. Hulu and YouTube already have closed captions on their menus. Hulu is already in talks to add premium pay subscriptions. Netflix is closer to Apple's iTunes, which has a CC search function for movies but has a dismal collection of content.
If you have a Netflix subscription, you might want to sign a petition which mentions captioning limited titles - less than one percent of the Netflix library. Clearly, this is not a priority for Netflix.
I've been writing about this topic for three years now. With Blockbuster closing retail rental outlets left and right, there are fewer and fewer options for instant gratification. Even though Netflix released this in April, the year is almost over and people are still annoyed with them. It's not an issue that will die down. When will Netflix wise up and recognize that we're a core demographic that depends on watching movies at home because we can't always see them in the theaters?
