Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
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Re: Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
#2Edit: this is a somewhat OT rant.
Netflix’s recommender system is hands down the worst I have ever seen. Every single thing I watch, it suggests The Queen’s Gambit and two other random Netflix productions.
Even if I watch the first of a trilogy (LotR, for example). How can they be so terrible at this?
The categories in the main browsing view are also hysterically arbitrary. It kind of looks like a topic model with back-constructed titles for the topics.
Finally, they replaced the ratings with “% matching”. I guess so they can recommend their subpar productions even if they get low ratings.
Re: Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
#3Edit: this is a somewhat OT rant. Netflix’s recommender system is hands down the worst I have ever seen. Every single thing I watch, it suggests The Queen’s Gambit and two other random Netflix productions. Even if I watch the first of a trilogy (LotR, for example). How can they be so terrible at this? The categories in the main browsing view are also hysterically arbitrary. It kind of looks like a topic model with ba…
Do you have a counter example of a streaming service that does recommendations better?
Re: Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
#4Edit: this is a somewhat OT rant. Netflix’s recommender system is hands down the worst I have ever seen. Every single thing I watch, it suggests The Queen’s Gambit and two other random Netflix productions. Even if I watch the first of a trilogy (LotR, for example). How can they be so terrible at this? The categories in the main browsing view are also hysterically arbitrary. It kind of looks like a topic model with ba…
I long ago ceased to believe that the Netflix recommender system serves any other purpose than to fulfill the company's internal obligations to push favored content, depending on what it cost. Sadly, the same is now true for Amazon Prime, which is an even hotter mess.
Re: Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
#5If you are curious about how Netflix uses Metaflow to power behind-the-scenes machine learning, take a look at this recent blog article https://netflixtechblog.com/supporting-content-decision-make...
Also I'm happy to answer any questions (I lead the Metaflow team at Netflix).
Re: Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
#6Edit: this is a somewhat OT rant. Netflix’s recommender system is hands down the worst I have ever seen. Every single thing I watch, it suggests The Queen’s Gambit and two other random Netflix productions. Even if I watch the first of a trilogy (LotR, for example). How can they be so terrible at this? The categories in the main browsing view are also hysterically arbitrary. It kind of looks like a topic model with ba…
Do you have a counter example of a streaming service that does recommendations better?
I read this as a condemnation of recommender systems in general.
That or a ceding of recommendations to marketing. That feels too cynical, but more accurate.
Re: Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
#7Edit: this is a somewhat OT rant. Netflix’s recommender system is hands down the worst I have ever seen. Every single thing I watch, it suggests The Queen’s Gambit and two other random Netflix productions. Even if I watch the first of a trilogy (LotR, for example). How can they be so terrible at this? The categories in the main browsing view are also hysterically arbitrary. It kind of looks like a topic model with ba…
Do you have a counter example of a streaming service that does recommendations better?
Recommendations maybe not, but I love that in HBO I can sort by IMDB score to find great movies/series that I haven't watched yet. I just watched Broadwalk Empire as an example, and loved it.
Netflix doesn't show IMDB scores, so I have to check it always independently...it sucks.
Re: Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
#8Edit: this is a somewhat OT rant. Netflix’s recommender system is hands down the worst I have ever seen. Every single thing I watch, it suggests The Queen’s Gambit and two other random Netflix productions. Even if I watch the first of a trilogy (LotR, for example). How can they be so terrible at this? The categories in the main browsing view are also hysterically arbitrary. It kind of looks like a topic model with ba…
Not just the recommender, but the design is horrible for me. I can't rest my mouse anywhere, it auto-starts something or enlarges something, it's all too twitchy. When you're watching an episode, there's no navigation link from the play screen to the main page of the series. As if they don't want us to navigate the site, instead be led on their happy path.
Re: Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
#9Edit: this is a somewhat OT rant. Netflix’s recommender system is hands down the worst I have ever seen. Every single thing I watch, it suggests The Queen’s Gambit and two other random Netflix productions. Even if I watch the first of a trilogy (LotR, for example). How can they be so terrible at this? The categories in the main browsing view are also hysterically arbitrary. It kind of looks like a topic model with ba…
Do you have a counter example of a streaming service that does recommendations better?
Back when I used Netflix primarily for DVDs, the recommender system worked pretty well for me.
Much later, when they switched to simple thumbs up/down, the recommender system was entirely useless to me. (Not merely because of the dumbed-down rating system; the recommendations were genuinely bad.)
For the time in between, I'm not sure if the degradation was gradual, sporadic, or not degraded at all.
Re: Netflix's Metaflow: Reproducible machine learning pipelines
#10Edit: this is a somewhat OT rant. Netflix’s recommender system is hands down the worst I have ever seen. Every single thing I watch, it suggests The Queen’s Gambit and two other random Netflix productions. Even if I watch the first of a trilogy (LotR, for example). How can they be so terrible at this? The categories in the main browsing view are also hysterically arbitrary. It kind of looks like a topic model with ba…
Their recommender system likely has multiple inputs that are under specific constraints and weightings. How well their recommendation algorithms work will probably never be known by the general public as we are force-fed a steady diet of whitelisted staff picks and promotional items.