The era of password sharing is getting closer after Netflix announced it would “more broadly” crackdown on account sharing in the coming months. This change will affect millions of users as the streaming company claims that this would help “build its business.”
According to Hollywood Reporter, Netflix will be pushing forward its “add a home” feature, where a Netflix account is locked within one household. Users can pay a small fee to add extra “houses” linked to the account and won’t be affected if users are traveling. At the moment, prices for this scheme have not yet been announced.
The streaming giant said in its fourth-quarter earnings letter that the current state of password sharing “undermines” its ability to “invest and improve” both the platform and the company. It has been recognized that this change will affect millions of users.
“Today’s widespread account sharing (100M+ households) undermines our long term ability to invest in and improve Netflix, as well as build our business. While our terms of use limit use of Netflix to a household, we recognize this is a change for members who share their account more broadly.”
This new model of password sharing was tested back in July 2022 in South American countries like Argentina, El Salvador, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, and Honduras. Prices ranged between $1.17 to $2.99 during the pilot but changes are to be expected once this fully rolls out globally.
In late 2022, Netflix rolled out its ad-supported subscription tier to provide other payment alternatives to use the streaming service. However, it was discovered that the site’s top shows aren’t accessible and Japanese broadcaster NHK decided to pull some of its content from the platform due to the broadcaster’s digital policies.
Despite financial struggles, Netflix managed to find some financial success after Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery‘s limited theatrical run. Unfortunately, former Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said that the company has no plans for the company to become a “Theatrical Business.”
At the moment, Netflix has over 220 million users subscribed to the platform. Once this feature officially rolls out, only time will tell if Netflix would lose subscribers or if users are willing to pay an extra fee just so their friends and relatives can still access their accounts.
