Netflix interactive show for adults will usher in a new genre

If you're an adult, you're probably familiar with the Choose Your Own Adventure books, where the reader gets to make decisions at certain points in the story. Earlier this year, Netflix launched an original kids show with an interactive element, allowing the viewer to choose the twists the show will take. Now a new report claims that Netflix may be creating one of these shows for adults, taking what is normally a passive activity and making it interactive.

According to Bloomberg, Netflix saw good enough success with Puss In Book: Trapped in an Epic Tale and Buddy Thunderstruck: The Maybe Pile, both interactive shows for kids, that it is moving forward with a similar offering for adults. It appears that confirmation has come from Netflix's Ted Sarandos himself.

Movies and TV shows are normally passive entertainment — you sit and stare at the screen and enjoy what is given to you, but without any involvement on your behalf. Interactive shows are different. As with those Choose Your Own Adventure books that were once so popular, interactive TV shows prompt the viewer to get involved by choosing the direction the story will take at certain points.

Though this novelty has proven popular with kids, that may not be the case with adults. Whereas kids are bundles of energy who often like to be hands-on, adults often watch entertainment specifically because it can be a mindless way to relax and be passively entertained. Still, there may be a subset of adults who get enjoyment out of engaging with the storyline, and it appears Netflix is moving ahead with an experiment to see if that is the case.

The novelty involved with such a show may prove very beneficial for Netflix — interactive shows aren't something you can find elsewhere, meaning Netflix would be the lone destination for it (for now, at least). Unlike traditional shows, you can't pirate an interactive movie, meaning anyone who wants to experience it for themselves will need to subscribe. Even if the novelty doesn't prove popular with adults, it could be a lucrative way to get parents to sign up on behalf of their kids.

SOURCE: Bloomberg