Many viewers plan their streaming sessions around their schedules, but Netflix currently only shows the remaining time left in a show or movie. This forces users to manually calculate when the content will end, which can be inconvenient—especially when trying to fit viewing into limited time slots like lunch breaks or before bed. A simple but meaningful improvement would be to display the actual clock time when the show will finish, eliminating this mental calculation.

How the Idea Works

One way this could be implemented is by adding a small tooltip or overlay that appears when a user hovers over or clicks the "time remaining" display (e.g., "15 minutes left"). This tooltip would show the estimated end time in clock format (e.g., "Ends at 10:45 PM"). The feature could be built as a lightweight JavaScript/CSS enhancement on web and mobile apps, requiring minimal backend changes. To accommodate user preferences, it could be made optional with a toggle in settings.

Benefits and Stakeholder Incentives

This feature would help casual viewers, parents monitoring screen time, nighttime watchers, and commuters who plan around travel schedules. For Netflix, it would improve user experience with little development effort, potentially increasing engagement. Users would save time and reduce friction in planning their viewing, while content creators might indirectly benefit if the feature leads to higher completion rates for shows and movies.

Execution Strategy

A minimal viable product could start with implementing the hover-to-display feature on the web platform first, as it’s the easiest to test and iterate on. After validating the concept through A/B testing with a small user group, the feature could expand to mobile and TV apps. To address potential challenges like time zone accuracy or UI clutter, the tooltip could use the device’s local time settings and be made dismissible or opt-in via settings.

While this isn’t a direct revenue generator, it could indirectly boost user satisfaction and retention by making Netflix slightly more convenient than competitors—none of which currently offer this small but helpful feature.