Netflix is the most popular streaming platform in the world. Part of its success is due to its ability to hook users to its catalog of audiovisual entertainment. To achieve this, it has an algorithm that values the content we see or the ‘likes’ and ‘dislikes’ we give. Based on all this training, he recommends series and movies that might also interest us. But, if what appears on your profile interface does not convince you, perhaps it is because the data that Netflix has about your tastes is not entirely correct. The best thing you can do in these cases is reset your account.
Each user personalizes the content that appears on Netflix through what they watch. But we may be sharing a profile with another person for a while and the recommendations may be more linked to their tastes than to yours. It is also possible that the platform thinks that a series you watched interests you, even if you left it halfway because it didn’t convince you. Or maybe you liked a specific theme for a season and you already hated it. This causes the interface to fill up with titles that do not catch your attention and makes it difficult for you to find the next series that you will marathon or the perfect feature film for a free afternoon.
Luckily, Netflix makes it easy for us to start training our algorithm as if you had just created the account. While we can educate our profile to have recommendations that suit us with the algorithm you already have, it will be very difficult. On the other hand, if you reset it, the process will be much faster, since you will start shaping it from scratch.
Reset the Netflix algorithm step by step
If you are interested in resetting the Netflix algorithm, you will have to do it from your mobile or PC. The feature is not available for the Smart TV app, so the first step will be to log in on any of the other devices. Once that is done, go to your profile and click on the profile icon that appears in the upper right corner. At this point, you will have to click on “Account” and then on “Edit settings”.
In this section, Netflix allows you to lock the profile with a PIN, set a new language as the default, apply viewing restrictions, etc. Among the many options available, the one that interests us is «Viewing activity«. There is where we can manage the history of what we watch on the streaming platform and the ratings we give to series and movies (if we do so).
If you think that the Netflix algorithm started to break down as soon as you started watching a specific series or movies, but you don’t want to get rid of your entire history, you can always make it only forget that you watched specific titles. You just have to look for them in the “Viewing activity” section and click on the “Hide from viewed content history” icon. However, if you think that this will not be enough or if you want to start over with the recommendations, scroll down and press the “Hide all” option.
Netflix will ask you if you really want to do it, since once it’s done, there’s no turning back. This is important to value, since the content you are viewing at that moment will not even appear (unless you view it again) and you will not know where you have left off. If you’re convinced, click “Yes, hide all my viewing activity.” If you don’t have them all with you, download your history first before clicking “Hide all.” In this way, the platform will no longer take into account what you have seen to make recommendations within 24 hours.
