20 Things You Didn't Know About Netflix

11. There Are Over 76,000 Different Categories

Netflix Debt
Netflix

Have you ever noticed those weirdly-specific sub-genres that will be visible on the Netflix home page? Stuff like "US TV Dramas Based On Books" or "Critically-Acclaimed Irreverent US TV Programmes". How does the company decide on odd categories like these?

You might not have even realised it, but chances are, you've seen dozens and dozens of these curious descriptive terms over your years as a Netflix user, because - according to The Atlantic - there are over 76,000 of the damn things.

The short explanation for all these categories is that Netflix's system analyzes each bit of content in its library, and tags it with appropriate keywords. And with millions and millions of different users to appeal to, those keywords are used to add each bit of content to a category that is personalised to a specific viewer's tastes.

For example, if you recently binge-watched Rick and Morty, you might see that "Critically-Acclaimed Irreverent US TV Programmes" category the next time you boot Netflix up, because all the shows within that group have been tagged as "irreverent" and "US TV programme", just like Rick and Morty.

The even shorter explanation is this: Netflix is watching you. Spooky.

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Danny has been with WhatCulture for almost nine years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. He has been writing and video editing for 10+ years, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers and uploading them to YouTube (they're admittedly a bit rusty by today's standards). If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order or to tell you about the making of 1988's Remembrance of the Daleks, Danny is the person to ask.