The concept for Netflix socks was informed by social listening and insights garnered from Netflix fan culture.

On Facebook, "Netflix intervening with daily life" was a top conversation theme associated with the brand, while "sleep" was the most common way that Netflix intervenes. On Twitter, over 9,000 unique tweets expressed sentiments similar to this one: "Fell asleep watching netflix last night. Not a clue where I got to and I'm like 4 episodes out."

Our strategy was to acknowledge and celebrate Netflix fan culture by introducing a solution. Inspired by social listening and user-submitted ideas, we created Netflix socks: smart socks that use an accelerometer to detect when you've dozed off and send a signal to your TV, automatically pausing your show.

Through the MakeIt campaign, we created a platform to demonstrate Netflix's commitment to designing innovative ways to watch better—on your terms.

Netflix socks incorporate a method called actigraphy. An accelerometer detects when the user has stopped moving for a prolonged period and triggers a signal to the TV, pausing Netflix. In advance of the trigger, an LED light in the sock cuff flashes red, warning that the TV will soon pause. Should the user move, the accelerometer will not fire.

We launched the cozy invention during the holiday season, releasing a video on the MakeIt website, and partnering with Make: Magazine to generate conversation. We invited fans to create socks of their own with knitting patterns inspired by Netflix Originals, DIY instructions, and open source firmware and schematics available on the website.

The MakeIt campaign is a platform for us to release physical working prototypes that are fun, open sourced to fans, and completely unique to Netflix—without the risk, cost, and time associated with modifying or releasing a real Netflix product.

Within days of the launch, Netflix socks became a global phenomenon—all without traditional PR support.

The project itself targeted Netflix fans in the maker community, while the story around the socks was crafted for mainstream appeal; fans who didn't want to make their own socks still had plenty to get excited and talk about.

From tech press to mainstream entertainment, the socks went viral, reaching over one billion earned media impressions.

On social, Netflix socks spread organically, garnering over 300 million social impressions. Influential voices in media—including Arianna Huffington, Marc Andreessen, and Michael Arrington—tweeted about the socks from their personal accounts.

The cultural relevance and authenticity of the project made Netflix socks a topic of daily conversation across platforms during the busy holiday season and further established Netflix as an innovative force in the entertainment industry.

We are currently working on the third installment of the MakeIt campaign.

Sometimes Netflix shows are so good, you binge-watch yourself to sleep and lose your spot. To combat this first world problem and demonstrate Netflix's commitment to innovation, we created the perfect marathon-watching accessory: smart socks.

Netflix socks use an accelerometer to detect when you've dozed off and send a signal to your TV, automatically pausing your show so you don't wake up two episodes ahead of where you left off.

We launched the socks as part of the Netflix MakeIt campaign—a series of of DIY projects inspired by users' watching rituals and designed to deliver the ultimate watching experience.

Netflix fans' devotion to favorite shows leads to comical first world problems and elaborate binge-watching life hacks, often shared on social media. Fans humorously bemoan falling asleep mid-episode and waking up lost or needing waterproof devices for in-shower viewing.

To celebrate this fan culture, Netflix wanted to create a campaign that demonstrates its consumer-centric positioning: members enjoy entertainment on their own terms.

Inspired by Netflix Hack Days and informed by social listening, we created the MakeIt campaign—a DIY series. For each project, we build a working prototype that enhances fans' watching experience, and we release instructions for makers to create their own.

Netflix socks, our cozy solution for sleep-deprived fans, became the second installment of the campaign.

Upholding Netflix's reputation for innovation, but limited by product integration restrictions, we needed to make authentic prototypes that were technically robust, but also simply designed and engineered to accommodate open-source access for fans.