Why is Apple’s Movie Search Results Rigged Against Independent Film?

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Why is Apple’s Movie Search Results Rigged Against Independent Film?

Why is Apple rigging the results of its movie search? Whenever I search for the term “rose” on iTunes, the film “Where’s Rose” does not appear. Instead, films non-related to the word “rose” appears. Additionally, the movie “Insidious” appears in the search results. “Insidious” Ty Simpkins plays in the film “Where’s Rose” and “Where’s Rose” should appear in the search for the term “rose,” not “Insidious.” Please fix the metadata on your films, so this rigging does not occur. Independent cinema must have a fair shot. The Apple TV app is a little bit better, but it still shows the movie “Insidious” and not “Where’s Rose” when searching for the term “rose.” Blocking “Where’s Rose” from appearing in the search appropriately seems intentional. Apple is making it difficult for users to find this independent film.

iPhone X, iOS 15

Posted on Sep 28, 2022 2:19 AM

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Answer 1

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Urquhart1244

Level 10

146,232 points

Sep 28, 2022 2:57 AM in response to mathsociety

So … what happens when you search by the full title name, like I expect that most people do that search by title? (Not available in my region, so I can’t say.)

Keyword search will also try to find matches in cast and crew and other information. I think ‘Bridesmaids’, ‘Neighbors’, ‘Insidious’ are included in the search results because of actress Rose Byrne.

Nothing is blocked. It’s not rigged against independent movies, John. But if you want to give feedback to Apple, then the feedback form is much more effective than this user-to-user forum. Product Feedback - Apple

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Answer 2

mathsociety Author

Level 1

4 points

Sep 28, 2022 3:11 AM in response to Urquhart1244

Full title search it comes up which is obvious. SEO is import therefore the keyword “rose” is important. Amazon Prime and Vudu when for example searching for the term “rose” the film “Where’s Rose” comes up at the top of the list. This issue is specific to Apple. It seems apple is giving precedence to the actors for the specific keyword “rose” as you point out. Users are searching for the movie but Apple’s not presenting it. As a result there are films with rose in the title that Apple is blocking from rising up. Thanks for the feedback suggestion.

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Answer 3

mathsociety Author

Level 1

4 points

Sep 28, 2022 2:15 PM in response to Urquhart1244

Yes, I'm convinced that Apple’s search is configured in such a way to bury “Where’s Rose.” Here is searching by “Ty Simpkins” it appears at the end of the search results for him in both iTunes and Apple TV. Unfortunate, it's good, though, that SVOD isn't a monopoly, but Apple holds such a good market share.

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Why is Apple’s Movie Search Results Rigged Against Independent Film?

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