One of the byproducts of the ongoing Streaming Wars that have come to characterize the modern entertainment landscape, with Netflix continuing to evolve and new streaming platforms launching almost everywhere you look, is that it’s never been this fun to be a TV fan. There’s more great content than ever to watch — which is also its own kind of problem. For some people, the paralysis of choice makes it harder than ever to answer the question of what to watch, since there’s more than ever to pick from.
Today, Google launched a new kind of recommender that functions a little like a TV guide with some fun Tinder-esque functionality, to make picking what you want to watch a little easier.
In a blog post, Google Search product manager Matt Sheets explains how the new swipe-based recommender works. “Starting today in the US, when you search for things like ‘good shows to watch’ or ‘what to watch’ on mobile, you can tap the start button in the ‘Top picks for you’ carousel to begin rating TV shows and movies.
You can swipe through to make some recommendations to start getting personalized choices, tailored just for you. This is the kind of screen you’ll see as you swipe through the carousel:
Once you’ve made some picks and have decided what you want to watch, this new tool can also help you figure out where it’s available — since some shows, for example, can be found across multiple streamers, while others are exclusive. After your search, Sheets explains, you can simply tap on a show or movie to see a full list of providers. You can also just perform a Google search for the specific content you want to watch, and Google now shows you where that content is available to rent, buy or watch via a streaming subscription.
On a related note, Google in tandem with this news decided to release some fun TV data — a look at what shows people are using Google to search for the most.
Here, according to Google, is a list of the Top 10 returning fall shows that people are Googling the most. No, surprise, Saturday Night Live — which launches its 45th season later this month — tops the list:
- Saturday Night Live
- The Walking Dead
- Grey’s Anatomy
- Riverdale
- The Voice
- Supernatural
- The Simpsons
- Big Brother
- Family Guy
- South Park
