GETFLIX

Getflix is a 'shop-for-entertainment' platform that creates a novel online shopping experience. It is based on a digital product service concept that came out of our business analytics and market research on the Blue Ocean Strategy of Videostreaming and Entertainment industry.

Starting in 1997 as a DVD-mailing service, Netflix has revolutionised the entertainment industry. Driven by innovation and foresight planning, it was the first to see the potential of Internet streaming technology. It quickly transitioned into streaming services with a subscription video-on-demand (SVoD) model in 2007. It is the most popular SVoD company globally[1], available in 62 languages across over 190 different countries and regions. As a leading SVoD service provider, Netflix's revenue has grown from 1.36 billion to around 25 billion in just 12 years[2].

This project is an 8-week exploration by a team of 4 members (Michael, Eve, Jeffery, and I), scoped in an entreprise module taking place in the COVID winter of 2021. Our team was tasked to select a 'parent company' to focus on, and since all of us are loyal Netflix-show audience and found ourselves resonate with the mission and values of this industry leader, we chose Netflix and applied our entreprise thinking to identify opportunities for promising and profitable Blue Ocean strategies.

"Show-ping", which is a wordplay by pun with "shopping", captures the idea of purchasing retail goods or products during the process of watching a show. This word does not appear anywhere but was created by me, myself, to communicate this novel form of online retail experience after the accomplishment of project Getflix. With Getflix, the audience of streamed video contents can find 'clickable' objects on the screen, which will also be purchasable through a seamless retail service embeded within the (selected) shows. As such, customers get to 'ping' the show to their life. For instance, they can wear the fandom clothes as their favourate characters, or decorate their rooms with interesting furniture or art re-prints, or even live a life like a show by purchasing touring visits to the places where the shots were made!

Just imagine how much curiosity and reaction it would spark, with Getflix featured on the next Squid Game series! Tired of shopping? Try "show-ping"!

Netflix is leading the industry of video streaming. As the fastest growing and most popular over-the-top platform, Netflix's revenue reached over US$25 billion in 2020. The growth trend was accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic, where people turned to online entertainment and shopping in societal lockdowns. With increasing competition from companies offering similar streaming services and difficulty of production in the pandemic, Netflix needs to retain its current user base and diversify its portfolio of revenue streams.

At the time, we did not know when the pandemic would end but we were sure that new norms of living styles have been formed as the global population collectively experienced the challenge brought by the lockdowns and social restrictions. As more and more social activities took place online, consumers of streamed media contents were constantly seeking for connection and craving for novel contents and experiences.

Our team studied the branding of Netflix and followed the guideline to make it 'legit' (and yes, we have four designers). We proposed the strategy of collaborative storytelling in Netflix original shows with established fashion brands (such as Chanel) or original brand IP produced by smaller companies under Netflix affiliation.

We sent out a survey to sample the market demands and customer behaviour, and the result confirmed our hypothesis because the results showed that 90% of people did not mind product placement and even liked it when it made sense with the storyline and wasn't too intrusive.

The table below provides a glimpse of how we planned to roll our the 'show-ping' feature for in-show shopping, by matching the goods and services with target customers' need and wants.

If Netflix saw our proposal, I believe they'd be happy to experiment this concept. We are happy to be approached to share insights and findings because we, as design engineers, value collaboration in innovation. We were excited when we were brainstorming and producing the venture report at that time (that was 2021) but unfortunately, nothing like this had been even tried (as I updated my website at the start of 2023). However, we do have some interesting conversations with the people connected to Netflix on 'why Netflix started its own shop' -yes they do have a shop so check it out - and 'how Netflix shop is perceived by people' (you don't have to click on those links because my site is free from advertisement).

Our business report has many interesting ideas and very rigorous justifications based on the market trends, the financial viability of such a service, and profit margin with prediction. If you are a start-up, or a design consultancy who wish to speed up your process, I do believe it's for you.