IMDb Message Boards - Will Be Disabled / Finished Quite Soon

[devilcoelhodog]

Hello, dear all.

IMDb is the world's most popular and authoritative source for movie, TV and celebrity content. As part of our ongoing effort to continually evaluate and enhance the customer experience on IMDb, we have decided to disable IMDb's message boards on February 20, 2017. This includes the Private Message system. After in-depth discussion and examination, we have concluded that IMDb's message boards are no longer providing a positive, useful experience for the vast majority of our more than 250 million monthly users worldwide. The decision to retire a long-standing feature was made only after careful consideration and was based on data and traffic.

Increasingly, IMDb customers have migrated to IMDb's social media accounts as the primary place they choose to post comments and communicate with IMDb's editors and one another. IMDb's Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/imdb) and official Twitter account (https://twitter.com/imdb) have an audience of more than 10 million engaged fans. IMDb also maintains official accounts on Snapchat (https://www.snapchat.com/add/imdblive), Pinterest (https://www.pinterest.com/imdbofficial/), YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/imdb), and Tumblr (http://imdb.tumblr.com/).

Because IMDb's message boards continue to be utilized by a small but passionate community of IMDb users, we announced our decision to disable our message boards on February 3, 2017 but will leave them open for two additional weeks so that users will have ample time to archive any message board content they'd like to keep for personal use. During this two-week transition period, which concludes on February 19, 2017, IMDb message board users can exchange contact information with any other board users they would like to remain in communication with (since once we shut down the IMDb message boards, users will no longer be able to send personal messages to one another). We regret any disappointment or frustration IMDb message board users may experience as a result of this decision.

IMDb is passionately committed to providing innovative ways for our hundreds of millions of users to engage and communicate with one another. We will continue to enhance our current offerings and launch new features in 2017 and beyond that will help our customers communicate and express themselves in meaningful ways while leveraging emerging technologies and opportunities.

It's a pity that such board will be finished soon. I really liked to read some comments on that forum. Some people are really interested on movies and posting wise words.



Source: http://www.imdb.com/board/announcement



Best regards.


devil (johner)

[johnmeyer]

I never used the IMDB forums but I suspect, with the number of users they have, it became impossible to moderate and, without moderation, forums can quickly turn into cesspools.

Also, I think IMDB has been the subject of a lot of pressure from the entertainment industry to protect the people in that industry. Here in California a law was passed, aimed specifically at IMDB, requiring them to remove any information about the age of actors and actresses. I'm sure that didn't happen without having a lot of pressure. Perhaps those same constituents didn't like what was being said in the forums.

[netmask56]

Here in California a law was passed, aimed specifically at IMDB, requiring them to remove any information about the age of actors and actresses.

That is so funny all one has to do is type the name and what is his/her age or DOB and up comes 100's of sites.

[vhelp]

Just to be clear, they are taking these message boards down ? I like reading some of the questions. And there are times when a question is asked and it turns out to be something I wanted to know. I usually find them here as a last resort.



And what about the reviews ? I read them a lot! Are they taking them down as well ?

[vhelp]

Someone should download all the message board messages and create a db out of it and post it up somewhere so people can at least search it.

Does imdb offer an api or something to pull text from their message board ? Now that I think about it, I thought at one time they had db files in text format that you could download via .zip, or maybe i'm thinking of another board all-together.

[KarMa]

Someone should download all the message board messages and create a db out of it and post it up somewhere so people can at least search it.

Does imdb offer an api or something to pull text from their message board ? Now that I think about it, I thought at one time they had db files in text format that you could download via .zip, or maybe i'm thinking of another board all-together.

Should talk with Jason Scott, who started (or helped start) the Archive Team. Which is well known for saving everything from Geocities when Yahoo shut is down. But it looks like they already know about it. Jason Scott also works for the Internet Archive.

http://www.archiveteam.org/index.php?title=The_Internet_Movie_Database

[vhelp]

It seems a few people have gotten together to create an imdb2 message board.

http://imdb2.freeforums.net/

[orsetto]

vhelp, yes, those are the message boards that are being disabled/discontinued.

The disingenuous IMDb boilerplate announcement is blowing so much smoke up everyone's butts that conspiracy theories abound. But in truth its the same old problem: social media being an insufferable vortex sucking in and destroying everything in its path. Facebook and Twitter, as usual, are the reason those discussion boards are being killed (just like they methodically killed off the comments section of nearly every website over the past year). Comment sections and discussion/message boards generate a lot of traffic for sites but very little in the way of income: people who want to chat largely ignore every ad the site throws at them. Also, those areas of a site are tricky to migrate to a cell phone interface: most of the loyal message board folks use their laptops or PC to engage. Those are not the people that appeal to advertisers: they only want the glazed-over eyeballs that are glued 24/7 to phone screens, they only want people who can be relied on to "like" things and download their corporate "app" instead of semi-anonymously surfing (thereby getting permanently sucked into linking and tracking systems).

This is really unfortunate for those who enjoy following a semi-coherent discussion of films and TV shows: iMDb was one-stop-shopping for that. You could spend hours easily jumping from one title to another while staying on the same site, being available to board friends via PM and assorted bookmarked threads. Plus you could easily flip back the primary site for hard data like running times, actors, etc. The experience is not remotely the same on Facebook or Twitter, but the mass market apparently couldn't care less and is more than happy with disjointed text bites that disappear into thousands of other uncoordinated text bites almost immediately. Who needs nested threads? Who needs a single point of contact built up over 20 years? Nobody that iMDb wants anymore. Pathetic.

I often daydream Zuckerberg and Dorsey are adrift in the North Atlantic, on a too-small wooden door, never to return. If only.

[KarMa]

Does mean that people can't review a movie with words anymore? Like is the 1-10 star system going to be the only way to review a movie?

[JVRaines]

Here in California a law was passed, aimed specifically at IMDB, requiring them to remove any information about the age of actors and actresses.

That is so funny all one has to do is type the name and what is his/her age or DOB and up comes 100's of sites.

IMDb is suing the State of California over this age discrimination law on the assertion that it violates IMDb's right of free speech under the U.S. Constitution. They are likely to prevail.

[vhelp]

Still. I like reading the reviews. I like to read how people think about any given movie. Plus, you learn a few things in the process. I find myself spending hours on imdb. You go from one initial quest, and find yourself, well, all over the place on imdb, and before you know it, two hours or so have gone by.

I hate ads. They are a waist, a gimmic and false excuse, and phony in so many ways. Well, we make exception for videohelp. Aside from that, can't stand ads. Anyway. Right. All I want to know is, are they also canning the reviews portion as well. I hope not.

[orsetto]

All I want to know is, are they also canning the reviews portion as well. I hope not.

Unclear at the moment. iMDB has released conflicting official statements. Variety and other industry trades have claimed iMDB is developing a mysterious "replacement platform" that will host reviews and possibly some form of discussion boards, but no specifics or timeline are forthcoming and it smells like total BS (if they're gonna re-host reviews and discussions anyway, why bother with the expense and disruption of ripping the site apart).

Understand that Amazon is behind this, not just Hollywood. Amazon banged its corporate head into a low hanging drainpipe awhile back, and has been making one bone-headed, inexplicable, seemingly counter-productive move after another lately. Note the blowback they're getting over their bizarre decision to randomly limit 70% of their offerings on any given day to "Prime Members Only" (meaning no sales to non-subscribers at any price). Why in bloody hell Bezos would want to turn the biggest online catalog store into Sam's Club, no one knows. Gutting iMDB of its discussion boards, which is the ONLY reason many people visit the site, is consistent with this approach. Next thing we know, he'll pull the plug on Amazon product reviews. I see this coming, based on the recent format shift that limits access to "unvetted" (i.e. "unpaid, non-shill") reviews.

[SameSelf]

As a long time IMDb user with many, many reviews (since 2005, I would share my reviewer handle, but this community is far too disrespectful), I always found the Message Board rather useless. Stupid and pointless questions or speculation, a painful layout, equally stupid answers, and since it is "small but passionate community of IMDb users", I can't say I blame them—there just isn't a lot of meat there to begin with. The real gold is the reviews. Always has been. Plus, they are hardly the first website to kill off comments q.v. Popular Science. So there is no point in crying about these sort of things.

I don't write or read many reviews anymore. Rather, I spend almost all my time on the site now mining movie details like cast, crew, soundtrack, and so on, which I believe is the real reason IMDb was created in the first place, not as an online forum. IOW, as long as IMDb maintains the spirit of being the one-stop shop for learning everything about a movie (although Wikipedia fills this role admirably as well), I have no problems with the Message Boards going away. But, I would be a little peeved if they killed off the reviews, especially mine.

[KarMa]

I would share my reviewer handle, but this community is far too disrespectful.

Only a few bad apples I can think of.

[Baldrick]

I haven't read anywhere that they will close the user reviews? They aren't really a part of the forum section.

But I like the forums...if you ignore 95% of the posts....

[orsetto]

As a long time IMDb user with many, many reviews (since 2005, I would share my reviewer handle, but this community is far too disrespectful),

Once the message boards expire, at least I can entertain myself hunting down reviews with your imprimatur. Your writing style is so distinct, it shouldn't be difficult to recognize if I stumble across it.

I always found the Message Board rather useless. Stupid and pointless questions or speculation, a painful layout, equally stupid answers,

Yes, well... the same could be said regarding any forum on any subject on any site. Even our own VH tends to go in cycles where there's nothing to see here beyond pointless troll wars. Sometimes I take a site off my bookmarks list for several months, give it a chance to exhale, then return to it. The disappearance of discussion boards from any significant site does not bode well for others. Two or three years ago, the discussion sections of several key photography and AV sites fell off a cliff: participation suddenly dropped 60% within a few weeks, never to return. Where the hell everyone went is a mystery, but it left a gaping hole for those who found the discussions educational and helpful. Things are getting depressingly homogenized out there.

The real gold is the reviews. Always has been.

In 20 years, I may have read 20 reviews there: to me thats always seemed the most pointless part of iMDB (personal reviews are everywhere, on thousands of sites, nothing whatsoever better or worse about iMDBs). You particularly enjoy writing and reading reviews, a perfectly valid personal preference, but for many of us the static reviews are often less interesting than the long form debates in the message boards. Nobody's suggesting all the discussions are worthwhile, just like only a small percentage of the reviews are worthwhile: its all personal taste. I'm not fond of the frequent stupid debates provoked by imbeciles or trolls, but even those occasionally illuminate elements going on in the culture ( how people of different ages and backgrounds perceive the same film or TV series, or react to a specific character or plot point).

Plus, they are hardly the first website to kill off comments q.v. Popular Science. So there is no point in crying about these sort of things.

Since they do not entertain or interest you, you don't care, but those of us who DO enjoy comment sections and dedicated discussion boards regret their migration to Facebook and Twitter. I intensely dislike having to click out of a random article page and log into Facebook or Twitter just to get a bead on reactions. Social media is a jumble of crap I don't care to sift thru for such minor things, its too inefficient, and in general I have no interest in participating in those venues along with the entire friggin world. I get it: 95% of the population has happily, willingly rolled over and presented their greased behinds for Zuckerberg and Dorsey to ravage and plunder. So every corporation, every website are moving their engagement to social media. Great for them, not so great for those who enjoyed a more localized experience.

I don't write or read many reviews anymore. Rather, I spend almost all my time on the site now mining movie details like cast, crew, soundtrack, and so on, which I believe is the real reason IMDb was created in the first place, not as an online forum.

Yes, but in recent years iMDB's utility as a source of actual production details has been obliterated by Wikipedia. It takes forever to navigate iMDBs cluttered interface: finding a cast member or running time can be tediously slow going, and their episode guides are often limited or unhelpful. About the only great feature they have left is the hot linking to a persons biography - filmography as you browse within the site. Otherwise, 99% of my time on iMDB is spent reading the message boards.

You don't like the message boards and find them utterly asinine: thats fine, many people I know agree with you. But it doesn't mean those of us who do enjoy them won't miss them. In the case of many TV series, skimming the boards after each ep can offer more entertainment and insight than the actual show. Even if one never posts, but only reads, the message boards offer a sense of community to people whose "real life" friends may not share those interests. Those positive aspects survived, despite the heavy onslaught of demented trolls in recent years (unless you're a hypersensitive child, its easy enough to laugh them off or roll your eyes and ignore them). For better and worse, iMDB corralled everything in a single integrated location, and the convenience far outweighed the raucous troublemakers or somewhat dated interface. The alternatives like Reddit pale in comparison (and talk about an archaic discussion interface). Are the iMDB discussions largely trivial and a waste of time? Sure! But what isn't? Instagram? Snapchat? Twitter? Blecch. I'll take iMDB any day.

[_Al_]

Things die, they are reborn, change, we just need internet neutrality so things work right.

As long as someone keeps their ratings, that anyone can fix with his/her personal coefficient to calibrate it properly, depending what that movie was about roughly, is going to be ok perhaps.
Could be a golden stuff for historians, their database, how people valued movie then, comparing it later.

[SameSelf]

Once the message boards expire, at least I can entertain myself hunting down reviews with your imprimatur. Your writing style is so distinct, it shouldn't be difficult to recognize if I stumble across it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_LwmCFqjQg

[hello_hello]

I don't bother with IMDB ratings or reviews. Reviews rarely at most, although I do pay attention to an unusually low rating or an unusually high one, but everything in the middle is personal taste.

It popped into my head while writing this so I thought I'd ask.... anyone else a fan of the Red Letter Media YouTube movie reviews? Their reviews and recommendations generally don't stray too far from my own opinion, and naturally it means they usually don't stray too far from being correct, but if you haven't seen them I highly recommend their early reviews. They started off with a fictional character doing the reviews, but the way they were put together was obviously extremely time consuming, so they scaled it back eventually.
If you haven't seen them, the Mr Plinkett Star Wars prequel reviews are far more entertaining than the prequels themselves, and each one's running time is almost the length of a movie. They come close to breaking each movie down scene by scene to explain why they're so bad on a scene by scene basis. Here's links for part one of each review for anyone who's interested. The remaining parts won't be hard to find.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL5919C8DE6F720A2D&v=FxKtZmQgxrI (seven parts)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPt1am18lR4 (three parts)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYWAHuFbLoc (one part)

As a long time IMDb user with many, many reviews (since 2005, I would share my reviewer handle, but this community is far too disrespectful),

The problem with reviews is there's a lot of personal taste involved. I've watched movies with average ratings/reviews and thought were quite good, while I'm pretty sure most of the Marvel Comic movies have good ratings despite being tedious predictable crap. I guess if you're going to review them you're likely to have a favourable bias to begin with, but anyway, if I knew your user ID I'd know which reviews to eliminate while trying to average them out to something remotely accurate. Are your reviews as closed-minded and unjustifiably opinionated as your forum posts here?

There you go... I managed to drop the level on the respectometer to zero momentarily without even knowing your IMDB ID.

"This community is far too disrespectful"..... Pot, black and kettle come to mind. Have you asked anyone in the IMDB forum if they're 16yo for planning to buy a video card on payday because you confabulated adolescent behaviour from it?
Do they have ignore lists at the IMDB forum for logical points/questions offered/asked by others when they don't suit your point of view, and manually ignoring becomes too time consuming, or do you have to decide what you will and won't read like you're all grown up over there?

[orsetto]

Once the message boards expire, at least I can entertain myself hunting down reviews with your imprimatur. Your writing style is so distinct, it shouldn't be difficult to recognize if I stumble across it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_LwmCFqjQg

Seriously, you have a definite style that I think might make for interesting reviews. Even if I completely disagree, I'm sure I'd be entertained and challenged, assuming I came across your work.