Foundd is one of our favorite, new start-ups in the personal recommendations field. Almost game-like, it builds a movie watch-list just for you, based on other movies you’ve rated highly, and works as awesomely as it looks!

Recommendations engines: Do we like ’em?

There’s been a whole host of web start-ups that have popped up and then sunk down into the deadpool, having launched with grand aims of becoming the web’s #1 recommendation engine for (insert one of – movies, TV shows, music, books). For one reason or another there hasn’t been one recommendation engine that’s really gone big.

It makes us ask: do you need someone to tell you what films to watch? Is it that hard to discover content? You have databases like Netflix for films or All My Faves for websites, but do you need something that offers truly personalized recommendations? The guys behind Foundd would say yes.

Foundd: How do you like your movies?

Personal recommendations engines for movies can take two approaches. One is ‘social recommendations’ – taking data from your Facebook to tell you what your friends like to watch, and then telling you to watch the same stuff. The second is Foundd: “We use an algorithmic approach to calculate personal recommendations for each individual,” says Foundd’s Lasse Clausen. “While there’s definitely the element that you want to see what your friends have seen, they’re generally not as good as algorithmic ones because if you test it, there’s a surprisingly small number of friends that really share your taste.”

So basically, Foundd asks you to rate a few movies (in a very user-friendly process that guides you through every stage), and then based on your ratings, offers you similar movies in a watch-list. It’s simple, fun, and tends to work. The more movies you rate, the more accurate the recommendations are; although generally there’s a smaller number of movies in their database, which means Foundd can offer more accuracy on a smaller number of films you’ll really like.

Bottom Line: Do we like Foundd?

Yes, actually, we do! Foundd is a fun way to discover new films to watch. You’ll have to give it 5 minutes worth of ratings to get your watchlist, but the process is simple and engaging enough. Watch this space for recommendations for apps, books and TV shows too! And as for website recommendations, we think you should watch this space too at All My Faves… 😉