Next Episode – Track TV Shows - Interview with the developer of a fantastic app

Did you have any prior development or coding experience?

When I started developing Next Episode, back in 2005, I was working in a software development company so I had some coding experience, but it was not a lot at that time.

What was the most challenging aspect of developing mobile app?

As I've been developing and maintaining mobile apps (for iOS and Android) for more than 10 years now, the most challenging aspect of development for me is keeping up with all the changing APIs, SDKs, and libraries I need to use during development.

_{Nikolay Nachev}

Next Episode is an 18-year-old website and community dedicated to helping you organize and keep track of your favorite TV shows and movies.

With the help of some long-time users and volunteers, the founder, Nikolay Nachev, is still actively maintaining and developing the website and the Next Episode mobile apps.

Name a few of your favorite apps and reason you love them.

Spotify, Waze, Reddit, Fantastical, and Goodreads are some of my favorite apps which make my life easier and give me pleasure, daily.

How long have you been working on this app?

Both the iOS and Android apps are more than 10 years old. To give you some context - when I started Next Episode I wrote it for iOS 2.0.

What need of the user did you have in mind when developing this app?

When I started developing the apps, I already had the website at https://next-episode.net with thousands of active users so I knew pretty well from them (as well as myself) what a TV junkie needs to track their TV series and discover new ones.

In what way do you think your app is better than similar apps on the market? Please describe in detail what innovation you think you bring and what you are proud of in your app.

Both the iOS and the Android apps are 5-star apps. Users love them. Sure they're not as flashy as some other apps, but they're clean and super easy to navigate and get the job done, and are being maintained and supported for over a decade now.

Also, I answer personally to all feedback/support emails and normally within the day. I care a ton about my users.

What are your future plans and expected features of the coming new versions of this app?

The most important upcoming feature is Dark Mode. It'll be coming soon both on iOS and Android. I have many other features in the pipeline (mainly to bring the apps to feature parity with the website).

Assuming new users of your app are reading this page. What do you want to ask them to do (contact you about X, Share the app, etc.)?

Simply check out the app and the website at https://next-episode.net. Create an account, add your shows, and let Next Episode take it from there. Do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any comments/suggestions or critiques.