Introduction
Mobile devices are rapidly proliferating as more than 2 billion smartphones were reportedly used back in 2014, and it is anticipated that more will be deployed for use. These penetration rates introduce the use of different applications within mobile devices (Kortum, 2015). Until 2007, smartphones were not mass-marketed and were not commercially available. However, after the launch of the first iPhone back in 2007, and android launch in 2009, the smartphones became commercially available, before 2007, a large number of selectable consumer applications within mobile phones were not available (Kortum, 2015). Users can now easily customize the applications within their mobile platforms which suit their needs. The amount of downloadable user applications for the mobile devices is large and continues to grow, with more than 1.2 million applications available in i0s platforms and more than 1.3 million available via GooglePlay in Android OS (Kortum, 2015).
Pine (1998) defines user experience as a unique set of offerings that emerge s when an organization intentionally uses its product or service offerings to engage the users in such a way that it creates customer delight. User experience encompasses the whole aspect of a service acceptance by a user. It touches all the elements inclusive; hedonic and pragmatic of a product. The instrumental or pragmatic elements of a service or product referred to the beneficial aspects such as the ease of use of an application or usefulness of the service. The non-instrumental or hedonic elements refer to the experiential and emotional aspects of service use. Learnability, security, user satisfaction and user interface are some of the factors that contribute towards user experience for a mobile application.
Mobile applications like Netflix use online personalization to enhance user experience. Online personalization via adaptive user interface means that the user interface automatically adjusts context, demands, detected changes, adjusts content, visual presentation or layout (Yang, 2016). User experience design is immensely important in developing a good mobile application since it has a huge impact on the success or failure of the application (Yazid, 2017).
Purpose of the study
The purpose of this research is to enable practitioners to use the information concluded within the research to make informed decisions regarding the mobile application and benchmark their progress for Netflix against other applications for mobile platforms.
Research Problem
Netflix application allows individuals to obtain content anytime, anywhere and through a mobile platform. Because of this specialty, individuals show immense interest in the application all over the world (Cebeci, 2019). This is why it is imperative to investigate what makes a good user experience for Netflix application and how the application is perceived by the users.
Research Objective
Previous researchers have focused mainly on Netflix as an emerging media platform or on its content. It has been observed that there is little research regarding the factors that affect the user experience for Netflix mobile application. Since it is still a gap in the literature, the research aims to investigate the determinants of user experience for Netflix application. The current research will focus on the studies dedicated to the user experience of using Netflix.
Research Questions
- Is the Netflix application easy to navigate for the users?
- Is the Netflix application interactive?
- Is the user interface (UI) plain and easy to follow?
- What elements of user experience i.e. ease of use, learnability, security, user satisfaction, user interface design etc. does the application follow?
- How satisfied are the users with the user experience?
- How likely are the users to reuse the Netflix application?
- Can the Netflix application serve the users to achieve the end goal, i.e. stream videos, watch TV shows, movies, etc.?
- Does the Netflix application meet its functionality?
Interview Questions
- In your opinion, is it easy to use Netflix mobile application? Explain your answer.
- Is the setting of your device sufficient for the use of the application?
- Do you think that all the functionalities of the Netflix application are designed in such a way that they aid the user in performing the task?
- Netflix interface design has elements that invite the attention of the users and provide the ease of use such as auto-play which induces binge-watching in users. What are the features that make the user interface easy for you?
- Do you think that the recommendation algorithm in Netflix application reduces the navigation time and enhances the user experience?
- Do you think that the Netflix interface uses a narrative to make the user believes to be in control and has the agency of controlling his or her Netflix experience through their choices?
Literature Review
Research related to user experience while using mobile applications has gained momentum as well as considerable interest from both practitioners as well as scholars. The literature within the field of user experience happens to include all factors which affect the interaction of a user as well as their experience of the product or system (Yazid, 2017). Yazid (2017) uses User Experience Questionnaire adapted from Chen’s User Experience (UX) assessment model for mobile applications which offers insight into the factors that affect the user experience. Ease of use, learnability, user Interface, security, user satisfaction etc. are some of the elements that contribute towards a fulfilled user experience. Ease of use factor covers three elements of user experience: data accessibility, usability and navigation. Yazid (2017) defines usability by how functional an application is for the end-user. This means that all the functionalities of an application must be designed in such a way that they aid the user in performing the task most efficiently compared to what they have been using or are used to before.
According to Yazid (2017) , it is imperative that the navigation pattern within an app is simple to aid the users that are new in figuring out how to move across the mobile application with ease in the fewer number of clicks. Data accessibility aspect for an application means that the data must be available readily at any location for consumption by the user to make the application reliable. Validation aspect contributes towards the ease of use elements in the context of making the users aware of the mistake that they might have made. This enables the users to check the error before they click the submit button.
Learnability happens to be the degree of ease as well as the speed with which a user gets familiar with using a specific application. High learnability refers to how users intuitively learn how an application in a mobile phone is used without checking user guide or FAQs. The user interface, according to Yazid (2017), is a touch-sensitive display present on a cellular device and is highly important for engaging the customer’s attention as it is the first thing the user observes. Selection of size, colours and icon give a meaningful impact on user perception. Another factor that impacts user experience, according to Yazid (2017), is behavioural intent which is a subjective norm.
An application with a good user experience design deploys the user with the right information and fulfil their anticipation so that the user can bookmark the relevant material and use the application again in future. Reduction of user errors influences the user’s intention to reuse the application (Yazid, 2017). Thus having suggestion tools such as listing recommendations based on previous click or views can be used as a method to improve user experience.
Yang (2016) states that machine learning and the adaptive user interface has become an effective tool for enhancing mobile user experience (UX). Popular mobile applications such as Netflix, Facebook, Google Search, Instagram, Kindle, Mail, Pandora, YouTube, Safari, Twitter etc. regularly mine user behaviour and context data to enhance personalized recommendations, predict log behaviours like sleeping or walking and filter out spam. Moreover, users now expect mobile applications to have smart systems that have intelligent interfaces (Yang, 2016). Mobile interface (UI) benefits from adaptations which specifically reduce navigation because mobile contexts and tasks vary greatly small mobile screens limit interaction as well as content space. For example, the Starbucks application learns how a user pays through their phone learn about the user payment method when the application is launched inside the store.
Furthermore, Yang (2016) states that mobile applications like Netflix use online personalization to enhance user experience. Online personalization via adaptive user interface means that the UI automatically adjusts context, demands, detected changes, adjusts content, visual presentation or layout. Movie recommendations in Netflix mobile application reduce the effort needed by the user to find the right movie or TV show. The Netflix application employs adaptive UI that uses the user profile and the set of user models to personalize the user experience as well as to address the needs of heterogeneous users. This is because online personalization benefits the service providers like Netflix and users. The term “algorithm identity” is used by (Markham, 2018) to denote how user interface adjusts content for the users and is a crucial element of the user experience catered by Netflix.
Algorithm identity is the “self” of the user that is constantly reproduced based on user interaction with the platform through clicks. This claim is authorized by a growing body of research that acknowledges the role of algorithms for generating different versions of a user’s identity online. Cheney-Lippold (2011), for example, a claim that application algorithms categorize the identity of the individuals which are inferred based on their application usage. Similarly, Markham (2018) argues that algorithms personalize and construct relational meaning and construct identity in contemporary use of the application.
Markham (2018) also focuses on what does the algorithm do and how it shapes the behaviour as well as the experience of the users. When it comes to the interface in Netflix application, over time and with routine use, it can be seen that the algorithmic identity develops. At the start, there is no typical profile page which users can refer to; instead, users can set up a small profile to inform the application regarding “who’s watching?” by choosing several avatars (Markham, 2018). The application also provides choices such as ‘maturity level’ and language topic from which caters to the need to the user.
Netflix via its mobile application successfully uses personalization in such a way that it anticipates the users’ behavioural intent and reduces the navigation time also known as the number of screens and reduces selection efforts which are the number of inputs or taps (Yang, 2016). The adaptive user interface is also beneficial for the service provider such as Netflix as it provides enhanced customer satisfaction and loyalty. The research and service design community recognize personalization as an essential element in maintaining and building long-term customer relationships while enhancing customer lifetime value. Yang (2016) states that adaptive user interfaces might confuse users who have the perception that the changes within the system’s behaviour happen to be negatively inconsistent instead of taking it as personalized user experience. This is because adaptive user interfaces might decrease the sense of control for users.
Cebeci (2019) uses the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to examine the factors that influence the intention of users to use Netflix and the user’s experience of the application. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) has been derived by Theory of Reasoned Action, which has four main constructs: attitude, intention to use, perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness. Cebeci (2019) states that perceived ease of use is the degree to which a user believes that using an application would be free of any effort and the perceived usefulness is the degree to which a user believes that an application would be beneficial to them. Users are having a high level of knowledge regarding application usage regard it as easy to use. Similarly, if a user has knowledge regarding Netflix application, he or she will believe it to be easy which means that Netflix is positively related to user’s perceived ease of use (Cebeci, 2019).
Similarly, Kortum (2015) uses the Technology Acceptance Model as a theoretical framework to denote the rapid adoption of mobile applications as the model suggests that technology and applications are widely adopted because of perceived usefulness. This perceived usefulness is related to the ease of use of the application such as the elements of availability, portability, low cost, ubiquity etc. contribute towards user experience (Kortum, 2015).
Markham (2018) uses a series of user journeys through the interface and critically analyzes each moment of the selected user’s Netflix experience (Markham, 2018). Over the course of the analysis, Markham (2018) ended up foregrounding different aspects of the influential, relational and infrastructural elements of the socio-technical experience of using Netflix. The researcher focused on three complexities, first being the user experience of the Netflix interface in which a complete narrative is implanted in such a way that the user believes to be in control and has the agency of controlling his or her Netflix experience through their choices. This happens to be apparent in the image of the company itself and is reinforced through the Netflix application.
Secondly, the Netflix application functions both indirectly as well as directly to condition the attitude as well as behaviours of the users. Directly, Netflix pushes to promote the original content as well as region-specific content. Indirectly, the Netflix interface design has elements that invite the attention of the users and provide the ease of use such as auto-play which induces binge-watching in users and promotes perceived ease of use.
The perceived ease of use is the degree to which a user believes that using an application would be free of any effort (Markham, 2018). Thirdly the recommendation algorithm creates an unsteady state of being in the users due to its incomprehensibility because of which users are never quite sure what the recommendation will be which enhances user attentiveness while using the application and engages them. Varela (2019) uses the user-focused approach for her study of the algorithmic culture that influences user experience. The researcher used Netflix’s recommendation algorithm to study the questions of black boxing, biases in the algorithm in terms of visibility as well as socio-technological elements of algorithms. The researcher conducted an in-depth interview methodology with users who are loyal users of Netflix in Singapore. Varela (2019) concludes that users also happen to be co-producers of the content as they contribute towards their experience as well through their usage of the application and consequently to the success of the application.
Pine (1998) defines user experience as a unique set of offerings that emerge s when an organization intentionally uses its product or service offerings to engage the users in such a way that it creates customer delight (Pine, 1998). Mobile user experience has been expanded upon using three dimensions such as device-related issues, application-related issues and communication-related issues. The device-related issues happen to be associated with hardware features that contribute towards ease of use of the accessories or the device such as a mobile phone. Communication-related issues tend to be focused on interpersonal communication, while application-related issues are linked towards the interaction of the user with the specific mobile application. The application related issues have been identified as the crucial layer which contributes towards user experience by Subramanya and Byung. Their research suggests that the application-related issues compensate for user constraints and underlying device constrains (Subramanya, 2009).
Research Methodology
The research methodology that is going to be used for this research is qualitative data collection and analysis (Hammarberg, 2016). Qualitative research is the most suitable method since the nature of this particular study is investigative. The research focuses on user experience while using Netflix application, and according to Hammarberg (2016), qualitative methods are used to explain research queries regarding perspective, experience and meaning from the standpoint of the participants. The research will employ qualitative research technique of small group discussions for investigating the concepts, beliefs as well as attitudes of normative behaviour. The quantitative technique has not been used because closed-ended questions that are asked for data collection do not provide good insight into the mind of the respondent.
Data Collection Technique
Focus group technique is going to be used as the data collection technique for this research because this technique provides insight into what individuals’ experience and feel. Focus groups are good for gaining a better understanding of the phenomenon being studied within the research. Data Analysis Technique used will be interviewed in which group interviews will be used that will allow the researcher the ability to capture in-depth information in a cost-effective way in comparison to individual interviews. The main benefit of this technique is that group interaction during the interviews will allow the researcher to grasp different views and will encourage the participants to make connections to various concepts of user experience while using Netflix.
Data Analysis
For each question asked during the focus group session, the researcher will summarize the main themes or the ideas that were discussed. Observations such as tone and opinion difference will also be taken into account. This procedure will facilitate a deeper understanding of the topic of the study. The discussion points that will not be coherent with the questions will also be noted and studied for a greater understanding of the topic. Data reduction will be done by summarizing the one to two-hour discussion with the focus group into manageable concepts for the development of the report. Concept map method will be used to aid in concept building during analysis (Barry Nagle, 2013).
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