New Website Looks To Be “Ping” for Movies

When Apple introduced the new iTunes service called “Ping” back in September, the music-based social networking scheme sounded intriguing to me. However, the limited focus, along with requirement that users download iTunes and have an Apple ID, have prevented it from becoming a phenomenon. Could a new site that combines this concept with the Internet Movie Database do better?

Admittedly, the website, Moki.tv, is more IMDB than Facebook, but the site looks to create a unique movie-browsing experience that involves much interaction. The site was delevoped by MIT student Matthew Huang with the intent of making a visual movie search engine that allows you to share your taste in films with friends.


Every movie (and TV show) has a page like IMDB does, though they are simpler. Also, search results show up as the movie poster with your rating on the bottom and a color-coded collective rating on top. The interface is clean and attractive, and I really like the custom search options that include displaying all results for films within a certain time frame, as well as filter by director, actor, genre, and more. Moki also provides suggestions for you to try out, including fun ones like “best movies involving Angelina Jolie“, which gives you search results for all Jolie films, ordering them by user ratings.


Given that that site is still in Beta phase, I’m sure we’ll see some of the kinks worked out, as well as more titles and site features added. While another regular film database isn’t really needed, I could see something like Moki thriving if it stays simple and keeps focusing on the social networking side of the project, as well as those unique search options and suggestions. Moki could be a great way to share your favorites and discover new movies.