Netflix Offers $1 Million “To Build A Ferrari”

Doug Caverly — Mon, 02 Oct 2006 21:20:54 +0000

Earlier today, Netflix announced that it’s putting a $1 million prize up for grabs. The Netflix Prize, as the online movie rental company calls it, will go “to the first person who can achieve certain accuracy goals in recommending movies based on personal preferences.”

“Recommendation systems covering a wide variety of categories will play an increasingly significant commercial role in the future,” said Reed Hastings, Netflix’s co-founder, chairman, and CEO, in the press release. “Right now, we’re driving the Model T version of what is possible. We want to build a Ferrari and establishing the Netflix Prize is a first step.”

The Netflix Prize “was inspired by the unconventional approach used to win the Longitude Prize, which was created in 1714 by the British government to focus on one of the most vexing and dangerous aspects of transoceanic travel – determining a ship’s longitude,” the release stated, noting that “the movie Longitude’ tells this story and is available at Netflix.” A more recent example of this sort of contest (and one that has yet to be turned into a movie) is the Ansari X Prize.

The Netflix Prize probably won’t be quite as challenging to secure, though. “The threshold required to win the Netflix Prize is a 10 percent improvement in accuracy over the current Netflix recommendation system,” according to the press release.

Also, “if no one wins the grand prize this year, the company said it will award a $50,000 progress prize to whoever makes the most significant advancement toward the goal and will award a progress prize annually until someone wins the grand prize.

More of the contest’s details are available here. “And,” Netflix noted, “because of the serious amount of money, there is some important legalese you need to attend to” if you decide to enter.

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Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news.

Blogging From Space

WebProNews Staff — Tue, 26 Sep 2006 14:45:11 +0000

I’d imagine that until you’ve blogged from space, you’ve lost all bragging rights. Anousheh Ansari, who recently became the first female private space explorer, takes a break from watching a few of the 32 sunsets and sunrises to blog about what it’s like up there – and to give the Googleplex a call.

Larry Page accepted the call from the International Space Station, according to the Google Blog, and chatted with Ansari (FYI, space has the same area code as Johnson Space Center).

Ansari took off from Kazakhstan on September 18th, and has been floating around the space station ever since. Kazakhstan is becoming Earth’s discount space-line. Kentucky’s Silicon Holler plans to launch a satellite from there for a fraction of US launch prices.

No, seriously.

Ansari’s mission, according to the Ansari X Prize Foundation, is to inspire interest in space exploration again and to lead the way to space tourism.

From the website:

The Ansari X PRIZE was modeled after the Orteig Prize, won by Charles Lindbergh in 1927 for being the first to fly non-stop from New York to Paris, and mirrors the hundreds of aviation incentive prizes offered early in the 20th Century that helped create today’s $300 billion commercial aviation industry.

So what’s she doing calling Larry Page? Well, one might imagine that geek billionaires make excellent potential space tourism candidates (as well as investors). According to Betsy Hanes Perry’s transcription of the call, Page is “wistful” about the idea.

“When can we come up to join you?” asked Page. Apparently he took the call in front of a live Google audience, as the transcription includes “wild cheering” from Googlers once Ansari mentioned that the space station needed Internet accessor were they cheering about her desire to add another shower?

Ansari does have batched email so she can send blog posts from space. From her blog:

I do not have realtime access to email. The email process is a batch process so it happens three times a day. I will do my best to get at least one entry in per day.

I do not have access to a web browser so I cannot read all your comments. I get some of your questions and greetings forwarded to me and I know that many people are sending their well wishes and words of inspiration. You cannot imagine how happy you have all made me, by sharing this experience with me.

Every time I read a message saying how someone has been energized and motivated to pursue their dreams, I get Goosebumps. I get all teary eyed when I read how a young girl in Mashhad is watching me and is motivated to one day become an Astronaut.

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Netflix Offers $1 Million “To Build A Ferrari”

Blogging From Space