I think that they could've used this to their benefit, and that it was a mistake to remove this feature. For example how TV Guide uses FacebookConnect on their site, to keep traffic there & let users see what their friends are watching.

I saw on their Facebook page that Netflix uses Facebook connect to share video choices why not tie that into the site itself?

Great idea.

It's sad that a company as good at listening as Netflix is still behind the curve when it comes to engagement. They have all of the tools to engage customers and keep them happy, yet they still have a barrier up when it comes to transparency. Sometimes it takes more than apologizing for an action.

Tessa Carroll
http://www.blogs.vbpoutsourcing.com

Guy Fawkes here, N-Flix reviewer rank #45. I just wanted to chime in here about the passionate responses found on this blog and others. I know I was disappointed because losing the friends function was actually like losing friends. Not to mention the countless hours put into rating, reviewing and fabricating top-ten lists.

Sure it's most likely a profit motive - less postage, primarily A-list movies, and shift toward mainly low-res streaming. I guess as a former “power user” I wasn't profitable to the company. In the height of my enthusiasm I'd have a turnaround of about 3 days for my movies. However those days are gone, the new releases have shrunk dramatically, no more top-ten lists that had a more COMPLETE release listing then N-Flix's, and films I sought (documentaries) almost completely phased out as well.

I write this because of the knowledge garnered from all the independent study opportunities due to my relationship with N-Flix - almost like getting another BA or Masters degree's worth of education. Streaming doesn't seem to do that for me. Nevertheless, I've about burned my queue and with no new docs or recommendations for months I may simply place my account on hold for a while or even leave. Anyway, it WAS fun while it lasted. Thanx for the experience, it was well worth the years of doing business with you.

Guy Fawkes (V for Vendetta)

Here's what I said to the good people at Netflix:

What nonsense — 2% ? Did you pull that figure out of a hat? Here's how most people probably benefit from Friends features - when they're browsing movies they are quickly and easily told what their friends rated it. The notebook system was crappily designed anyway, so no big loss, but you're not allowing Netflix users to see what their friends rated a movie while browsing?? Yes, it must take a huge amount of engineering skill to maintain that feature. Thanks for improving my Netflix experience! I'll be improving my Netflix experience by canceling my account. Of course, it seems you people realize you were wrong, but it would make you look bad if you admitted it, I understand of course.