Amazon opens up Instant Video Finder to public beta
updated 04:32 pm EST, Sun January 6, 2013
Categories cover general themes, specific genres, moods
Amazon has launched a beta version of its Instant Video Finder feature, in an attempt to organize the streaming video catalog for its users. The new Finder will give suggestions on the website for what someone will want to watch via the Instant Video and Prime Instant Video streaming services, based on not only broad categories, but also through different moods and general themes, of what has already been watched.
Normal categories such as Comedy, Drama, Animation, and Action/Adventure are joined by some fairly abnormal categories. Feel-Good and Exciting options suggest films that would be uplifting to the viewer, while other category titles are more for those wanting to watch a specific narrow type of film, such as Time Travel, Sea Adventure, Police Procedural, and Dystopian.
TV and movie suggestions have been an issue for streaming services, all of which want to offer their users as much of their programming as possible in order to attract more subscribers. Netflix also performs a similar sub-categorization of its media, though not to the more extreme levels that Amazon has.
