HBO Max Users Will Be Able to Rate Movies and Shows

Ever feel like HBO Max is serving up movies or shows you’d never watch? Starting soon, you’ll be able to rate the titles that appear in your menu, just like Netflix.

Subscribers will be able to rate titles as “Love,” “Like” and “Not For Me.” You’ll see the rating buttons in the content description or when you finish watching something. As with many new features, the rating feature will roll out slowly across devices and accounts. When I tested the service with my Apple TV today, I didn’t see it.

If you rate something “Not For Me,” those titles will be “deprioritized” across your profile. If you hit the “Love” button, you’ll start to see a custom “Because You Loved” rail with suggested titles. The idea is that the ratings will help engagement over time, an especially welcome development since HBO Max jammed its platform with reality TV slop after the Warner Bros. merger with Discovery.

Netflix has been allowing users to rate movies and shows as far back as 2001. Its 5-star system was replaced by thumbs-up and thumbs-down buttons in 2017. A double-thumbs-up was added in 2022.

Engagement Arms Race

As the streaming wars roll on, each platform is in a ferocious battle for your attention. When you turn on your TV, what’s the first app you open? And once you’ve opened it, how long do you stick around? Netflix’s user interface is a big part of why they’re the industry leader. Not only do they have a huge dataset on each user, they also throw you different cover art for each title, hoping they can find the right image to pull you in. You may see several different images for each title as you scroll through.

Other platforms like Paramount+ and Disney+ have rolled out linear “virtual channels” to allow “lean-back” entertainment. In 2022, Paramount Global’s President & CEO of Streaming reported that people who use the Paramount+ linear channels spend 40% more time on the service than they did previously.

Considering HBO Max’s access to the huge library of shows from Discovery, Magnolia Network, Cartoon Network, TLC, Adult Swim, Investigation Discovery, and HGTV, it wouldn’t surprise me if virtual channels are the next feature on the way.