Having My Say: Netflix fast forwarding not needed

Few can argue Netflix set the bar when it comes to streaming content. Hell, they created the concept, and everyone else has been struggling to keep up. Kinda like what Marvel did with the whole cinematic universe thing.

Unlike Marvel, Netflix has had a few stumbles along the way. The first was wanting to put ads between shows, which would slow down binge watching. Fortunately the idea never took off. But their next one could be the biggest blunder of all.

Word hit Monday Netflix wants to introduce a new feature allowing viewers to speed up or slow down the viewing experience by .5 time or 1.5 times normal. This has filmmakers fuming, with the likes of Brad Bird and Judd Apatow saying, via Twitter, they intend to fight the streaming giant on this one.

Why? They believe viewers should watch a film or TV show in the manner the filmmaker intended. And they have a valid point, which I agree with. Films are often deliberately paced so as to build tension, or moments are slowed down to give the audience a break. Why fuck with that?

Whelp— another spectacularly bad idea, and another cut to the already bleeding-out cinema experience. Why support & finance filmmakers visions on one hand and then work to destroy the presentation of those films on the other??? https://t.co/T7QdYAQGHU
— Brad Bird (@BradBirdA113) October 28, 2019

Listen to @JuddApatow https://t.co/tF1lx2UPQJ
— Sean Illing (@seanilling) October 29, 2019

Not to mention viewers can already pause the stream and jump anywhere they want on the program anyway. Adding an additional speed-up or slow-down function just seems redundant.

What I would say to Bird and Apatow is VCRs and DVD/Blu-ray players offered a fast forward and rewind function years ago and no one cared. Just wanted to point that out...

Leave the idea alone, Netflix. It's not needed. But that's just my opinion.

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