That CD is the best, says people that like that kind of music

July 18, 2007 1 min read

The problem with any ratings system that depends on community participation is that people only buy (and thus, rate) things that they think they’ll like. Very few people actually make an effort to rate and review things that they don’t like. “Coco” by Colbie Caillat, the top Album on iTunes today, has a 4 1/2 star rating, but does that really mean I’ll like it?

Amazon has their “people who bought this also bought…” feature, and Netflix’s ratings are supposedly adjusted based on how you’ve rated in the past (although their recommendations system still needs some work). These are all helpful, but they have a long way to go. I don’t cared what the majority of people think of that CD, I care what people that like the music I like think of it.

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— @bkeepers