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Friday, March 15, 2013
by Michael Loatman
Netflix March 13 announced it will take advantage of recent amendments to the 1988 Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) by launching Netflix Social, which it said will permit users to share their favorite movies and shows with friends.
The move comes about two months after President Obama signed into law the VPPA amendments (H.R. 6671), which allow sharing of recently watched movies on social media platforms.
The VPPA was enacted in the wake of bipartisan outrage in Congress over a newspaper's publication in 1987 of a list of videotapes rented by unsuccessful U.S. Supreme Court nominee Robert Bork.
Dramatic changes to the commercial video distribution landscape since the 1988 passage of the VPPA required an update to the law, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), the author of the amendments, said. In a statement, Goodlatte explained that "H.R. 6671 preserves careful protections for consumers' privacy while modernizing the law to empower consumers to do more with their video consumption preferences, including sharing favorite TV shows or recently watched movies via social media networks in a simple way."
H.R. 6671 sailed through both chambers of Congress and was signed into law by President Obama on Jan. 10.
Netflix said subscribers using the new Netflix Social feature will "see what titles your friends have watched in a new 'Watched by your friends' row and what they have rated four or five stars in a new 'Friends' Favorites' row. Your friends will also be able to see what you watch and rate highly."
The company added users could control what is shared with their friends. Netflix explained that if users did not want their friends to know about a particular movie, they could click a "Don't Share This" button. It also said subscribers could decide to stop sharing altogether at any time.
Copyright 2013, The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.
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