Autoplay

Are you still watching?

📍Ontario Science Centre

Hi there,

What’s the last show you binge-watched? For me, the Sopranos.

Five things to share:

1. Autoplay is unintentional. It happens to you. Automatically. One after another. In fact, autoplay can be so addictive and harmful that the US tried to ban it in an effort to reduce digital features that are designed to addict us. Luckily the solution to Silicon Valley’s dirty trick to keep us hooked on content consumption can be as simple as turning autoplay off. Autoplay: Are you still watching?

2. Is Binge Watching Bad For You? (Yes)

3. A quote I want to share with you:

   Shit don't change/ Until you get up and wash your ass.

   — Kendrick Lamar in “Institutionalized”

   Stuck in my head all week. It takes effort.

4. ‘One more episode, please?’ Why we can’t stop binge-watching on Netflix

   Before the advent of streaming, people had to wait for a week before a new episode of a TV series was released. But streaming platforms now often release whole series of episodes in one go. Their system also automatically plays the teaser of the next episode. This strategy changes the way people watch series, encouraging them to binge-watch.

5. A challenge for you: Turn autoplay off on all your streaming services, including YouTube, for a week. See if it makes a difference in how much content you consume. You can always turn it back on.

That’s all for this week!

Thank you for reading, and please share with anyone you think may benefit.

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Until next time,

Mehret