Binge-watching Netflix proves popular among students
Stillwater graduate Mitchell Langness browses Netflix suggestions to find a new show. He has already binge-watched a few shows and his addiction leads him to search for a new one.
January 6, 2019
Netflix is one of the most popular streaming sites of the century with over 90 million users and an owner with a net worth of about $3.4 billion. Netflix is also easily accessible and cheap, pulling in their users with a fee of $12.99 a month, which means users pay a small fee for over 6,000 options of movies and shows.
Junior Brianna Wallace said she chooses Netflix because it is so cheap.
Many students choose to watch Netflix in their free time instead of doing other activities. Watching shows can be relaxing and a good way to zone out for a few hours, but this can also be harmful, as binge-watching can make students procrastinate and lose track of time.
“Time goes by faster. You could be watching an hour long show and just be completely hooked and it feels like it only took 15 minutes,” Wallace explained. “When I binge watch shows I just think I’m relaxing and it’s basically ‘me time’ and a break from work or school.”
Binge-watching can be described as being like an addiction. Sitting down and watching a show that makes students happy for hours at a time can feel good, but can also prove to be harmful as students begin to push aside their real lives.
Netflix can pull people to feeling like a part of the show, however, junior Missa Lunzer said she moderates her usage on Netflix to avoid being sucked into a false reality.
Junior Mira Torzewski said the longest time she binge-watched a show lasted a couple days straight in the summer.
Binge-watching is common due to the fact that Netflix offers thousands of options of movies and shows to watch. A lot of these shows and movies have been around for seasons and have gained an audience that can only access these shows inside of Netflix.
“I finished ‘Law and Order’ twice now,” Torzewski said.
Time goes by faster. You could be watching an hour long show and just be completely hooked and it feels like it only took 15 minutes.
— Brianna Wallace
Netflix is currently the top streaming service. It competes with Disney+, Hulu and Amazon Prime. Students choose to watch Netflix over other streaming services due to the quality content it produces and the excessive amount of options. Hulu offers over 4,000 and Amazon Prime offers over 20,000, yet Netflix still comes out on top.
However, Torzewski disagrees due to the fact she enjoys musicals which are primarily on Disney+.
Although Netflix is a successful streaming platform with lots of support, students still believe a few things could be changed about the company to make it better.
“I dislike the fact that some of the movies are older and there’s never any newer movies,” Wallace said.
Lunzer said she would like to see “Mukbangs” on the site.
Netflix has positives and negatives. It can be a release from stress, but it can also be addictive and harmful to students looking to get work done. Students are advised to manage their time between binging and getting work done.
