Netflix Comes to Facebook, But Not for U.S.

22 Sep, 2011 By: Chris Tribbey

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By the end of September Netflix will be integrated into Facebook for subscribers in Canada and Latin America, the companies announced Sept. 22, allowing Facebook users to share what they’re watching and see what their friends are watching.

The service will not be available to subscribers in the United States, due to the 1988 Video Privacy Protection Act law that “creates some confusion over our ability to let U.S. members automatically share the television shows and movies they watch with their friends on Facebook,” Michael Drobac, director of government relations at Netflix, wrote in a blog post.

“The good news, however, is that some forward-thinking members of Congress have introduced legislation, H.R. 2471, that would allow you to make this choice,” he continued. “We’ve got some big supporters in Congress, including Reps. Bob Goodlatte, Howard Coble, Jim Sensenbrenner, Zoe Lofgren, Linda Sanchez, John Conyers, Henry Waxman, Darrell Issa, Judy Chu, Loretta Sanchez, Lee Terry and Sue Myrick but we can use more.”

The sharing service can be turned off at any time, Netflix said.

Facebook also announced Sept. 22 at its developer conference that TiVo will be integrated into Facebook, allowing subscribers to recommend titles and see what their friends are watching.

“With this improved Facebook integration, TiVo users can discover things to watch from the new social guide and can feature their entertainment experiences and choices with their friends,” said Jim Denney, VP and GM of product marketing for TiVo Inc. “Through full integration with the set-top box, TiVo is defining the future of social TV by offering a new way for people to connect and interact on the second screen in a way that is fully integrated with their actual TV watching experience.”
 

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