> So to summarize, customers are dumb & recommendation algorithms are hard.
Or to not throw away all the points I argued for: There were a lot of good reasons for moving away from the five star systems, and the main motivation was providing a better less confusing UX
> I loved Netflix stuff when they started out, banger after banger was delivered. Something changed.
The main thing that changed was that media companies woke up to streaming and stopped giving away the rights to properties that many people enjoy (mainly nostalgia shows + blockbusters) for cheap. That forced Netflix much more into media production of their own, which has it's up- and downsides, and gave Netflix the same warts that media companies always had (e.g. having to make hard decisions around canceling shows). It's a very clear case of a first-mover losing its advantage over time.
Sounds pretty similar to all mediocre companies out there.
I loved Netflix stuff when they started out, banger after banger was delivered. Something changed.