Internet culture has created the phrase “Netflix and Chill” and now, an Airbnb in New York is bringing it to life. For those unaware, the meaning of the phrase has little to do with the online streaming platform and relaxation. Instead, it has come to be a covert way of initiating a booty call.
Now, thanks to Tom Galle and internet-art company ART404, users can rent a “Netflix and Chill” room in New York City’s West Village. For $400 a night, guests can stay in a loft apartment equipped with a digital projector, custom-made Netflix themed sheets, and a minibar stocked with alcohol.
“We just play around a lot with Internet culture with things that are happening,” Art404 member Moises Sanadria told the New York Daily News. “We were looking for a translation from URL to IRL.”
The listing for the apartment, which will not be providing users with condoms or allowing for more individuals to join the fun, went live on Wednesday and is only available on Saturday nights.
“If you have a week of Netflix and Chill nights, the experience would dull over the week,” said Alyssa Davis, an artist who helped create the room, to the News. “So we want to keep it to that one pinnacle moment.”
Should the project be successful, said Davis, then it may open up for Valentine’s Day.
“They experience something different than just going to a hotel,” told Galle, who recommends watching 500 Days of Summer or Her on the visit, to the News. "It’s bringing a part of the internet to a real life experience. You don’t have to sleep with a girl there or a guy there, we’re just bringing the joke to real life.”
Last year, Netflix got in on the action by unveiling a DIY project where users can make a “Netflix and Chill Button” called The Netflix Switch. Building the button will require a button, a microcontroller, and a polymer lithium ion battery with a Micro USB jack. Also required is a transistor, a resistor kit, an infrared LED, and custom enclosure. The switch can accomplish a wide array of tasks (e.g. turning on your TV, turning on Netflix, dimming your lights, ordering takeout, and silencing your phone) with one simple press of the button.
“No two switches need to be the same,” said Netflix. “We'll walk you through how we made ours, but encourage you to make your switch your own. You should be comfortable with a soldering iron and have a solid understanding of electronics and programming before embarking on your journey to one-switch watching.”
