Netflix lockout during work hours

The pandemic was wild. I remember reading stories about people taking vacations, watching tv, working multiple jobs, or not working at all when every company in the tech sector still supported working from home.

Many people (like myself) were insanely productive during the pandemic, as there was no commute and you could simply grab coffee and lock in without needing to go through all the pleasantries that come with working at a typical office.

That ship has sailed.

Return to office is the hot buzzword of 2024, and support for remote work is waning. There are some holdouts, like Block or Spotify, but many have returned to business as usual. My company has a hybrid model (many people are distributed, so they never come in). With 6 months under my belt running the business, I see the value in both sides. At scale it’s hard to manage and motivate a distributed workforce. It’s easier with smaller teams.

Either way, you don’t want people who waste time on payroll. To that end… what if apps like Netflix had a feature restricting use during work hours?

This would be annoying for many people who work jobs with natural downtime, or literally anyone who doesn’t work a standard 9-5 schedule. Also, when you’re traveling, you might want to watch a show at a weird hour.

All in all, this is a terrible idea, but here we are.

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