Netflix’s ‘You’re Terrible’ Online Experience Is Either Deeply Oblivious or Downright Evil

The sixth season of Black Mirror begins with an episode titled “Joan is Terrible” . If you haven’t watched yet, the premise is essentially this: when you subscribe to Streamberry ( Black Mirror’s version of Netflix), you give up rights to your likeness and life. Streamberry can then use the events of your daily life to put on a show about you. In this case, the main character, Joan, made her day for the entire Streamberry community to broadcast a show called Joan is Terrible , which nearly ruined her life.

It’s a lot like Black Mirror and pokes fun at Netflix’s corporate politics more than you’d expect from a show on this platform. Perhaps that’s why, to continue the “fun”, Netflix launched a fake Streamberry registration site: when you “register” with Streamberry, you enter your name, upload a photo and, voila: the Streamberry homepage is updated with the new “You’re Terrible” show at the top, like and in the show. For example, if I participated, I would see the inscription “Jake Is Awful” at the top.

Of course, this is not the first such action. Barbie launched a selfie campaign that allowed her face to be featured on one of her movie posters. But there’s an irony here that I can’t tell if Netflix wants you to notice or not: just like Joan gives up rights to her life and image by subscribing to Streamberry, you give up rights to your image when you upload a photo. . to that “You’re terrible” experience.

Streamberry’s terms of use don’t fit your data

Before uploading a photo, the site invites you to read the Terms of Service , which is a basic practice for everything we do online. The terms are full of “we’ll take all your data” language: Netflix scrapes your IP address and GPS coordinates (to determine your approximate location); they will take your sound, electronic, visual, thermal, olfactory or similar information (I do not know how they will perceive “olfactory” information, but okay); and they will share your data with the Netflix family of companies, in addition to many other caveats.

Netflix also reserves the right to use your “You’re Terrible” experience on their billboards promoting the show. So you can upload a photo of yourself as a one-time thing, but get a message from a friend in Los Angeles during awards season that your face is being used to get Black Mirror Emmy votes.

But it is the “Name and Likeness” section that is particularly similar to “Black Mirror “:

By interacting with this Experience, you grant the Netflix organization that provides this Experience to you, its affiliates and their respective successors and assigns, and anyone authorized by any of them (collectively, “Netflix”), an irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive right record, portray and/or impersonate you and use, and grant to others the right, but not the obligation, to record, impersonate and/or impersonate you and use your real or simulated likeness, name, photograph, voice, actions, etc. in connection with the development, production, distribution, operation, advertising, promotion and publicity of this Experience in all media now known and created later, as well as in all languages, formats, versions and forms associated with such Experience. without compensation to you or any other person, unless prohibited by law.

I’d chalk it up to Netflix continuing its Black Mirror dive, if it wasn’t actually a binding legal document. If Netflix had the technology to make Joan Terrible in real life, it looks like they would. While it remains impossible (at least I guess), the language allows Netflix to use your image (and every other aspect of you) in any way it wants. If you use this experience, don’t be surprised if Netflix uses your face in their future show, however much they want it.

It’s not just about Streamberry’s terms of service. Netflix’s own TOS is rife with morally gray language that could end up in a future episode of Black Mirror . As reported by Mashable , these terms range from testing new features and policies on you by default, to disclaiming any liability from Netflix if their content harms you.

Perhaps we are all a little tired of talking about data privacy on the Internet. We know companies like Netflix, Google and Meta use our data for corporate gain. But just because this is the world we live in doesn’t mean we should unwittingly transfer more of our data. In fact, it’s worth taking a look at what data you ‘re sharing with these companies, including Netflix, and thinking about ways to offer less. You may be paying more than ever for a Netflix subscription after the ban on sharing passwords: you don’t have to hand over your data either.

Use the “You’re Terrible” experience if you want, but understand what you’re signing up for (and giving up).