TECHDAILY: Netflix- Utilizing Big Data & Analytics for Better Entertainment!

The Company

Netflix has now become a household brand and one of the leading sources of entertainment. In fact, it’s considered to be an innovator in the over-the-top (OTT) content space, vastly outdoing any competitors they may have. They credit their success on their ability to deliver highly targeted, personalized experiences for every subscriber.

Netflix heavily relies on big data analytics in order to better understand their consumers – so they can better address their needs. Using this method, Netflix was quickly able to grow from a mail order DVD service to the world’s most prominent OTT provider.

Most of Netflix’s success lies in their ability to predict what consumers will want to see. In fact, most of their streaming activity comes from the various movie and show recommendations featured on each user’s account. Better recommendations, after all, result in a better experience for users.

The Problem

In order to create a better experience for users, Netflix decided to partner up with Teradata and make the switch to a cloud-driven big data analytics system.

They needed a system that could:
– Rapidly and reliably handle staggering workloads.
– Easily scale and contract as necessary with exceptional elasticity.
– Provide a safe and redundant repository for all of the company’s data.
– Fit within the company’s cost structure and desired profit margins.
– Work with a variety of analytics approaches, including neural networks, Python, Pig, as well as varied Business Intelligence tools, like MicroStrategy.

The Solution

On top of having a new system to accommodate Netflix’s need, Teradata also provided them with a data warehousing system and analytics tools capable of complex workload management. In order to meet Netflix’s demands, Teradata set up a Teradata Hadoop connector to Netflix’s cloud that enables Netflix to efficiently move cloud-based data from one provider into the Teradata Cloud.

Teradata managed to provide Netflix with a system that allowed them to do much of their analytics off a world-class data warehouse located in the Teradata Cloud. Secure and efficient, it allows them to expand and contract in response to the changing business conditions while reducing the need for data movement.

The Result

Teradata created the Teradata Unified Data Architecture providing Netflix with:
An integrated data warehouse, which enables organizations to access a comprehensive and shared data environment to quickly and reliably operationalize insights throughout an organization.

A powerful discovery platform offers companies discovery analytics that rapidly unlock insights from all available data using a variety of techniques accessible to mainstream business analysts.

A data platform (e.g., Hadoop) provides the means to economically gather, store and refine all a company’s data and facilitate the type of discovery never before believed possible.

Source: Teradata | www.bigdataanalyticsinfo.com