Top line
Netflix users in the U.S. will no longer be able to share their accounts with others who don’t live with them, the company announced Tuesday, after the same password breach was implemented in four other countries earlier this year.
Netflix announced Tuesday that it will begin cracking down on US passwords.
Basic facts
Netflix told US users that “the account is intended for one household,” urging subscribers to sign out of their accounts on devices that “should not” have access to the user’s account and set the account’s primary location.
If the user doesn’t set a primary location, Netflix will use the IP address and device ID and configure it automatically, the company said.
Netflix users who want to share their account with someone outside their family can pay a $7.99 “sub-account” or can transfer the profile to a new membership that someone else pays for; a move that will allow users to save their viewing history. and saved list.
Users will still be able to watch Netflix on their personal devices or access new TVs in hotels or other locations using one-time access codes, the company said.
Basic background
Earlier this year, Netflix announced that it was restricting password sharing in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain. Netflix said at the time that similar measures would be available in the US in the coming months. Netflix began testing the paid exchange, with the same restrictions that US users will now face, in its Latin American market last year. Netflix is ​​one of the first major streaming services to begin cracking down on password sharing, likely due to last year’s loss of subscribers and the need to generate additional revenue.
Big Number
100 million As of February, that’s how many households share their passwords, Netflix said.
Further reading
Netflix Password Cracking Begins in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain (Forbes)
Netflix’s password-sharing debacle, and what Amazon Prime, Hulu and others are doing, explained (Forbes)
Netflix is ​​losing subscribers as Disney+ approaches. Here’s How Major Streaming Services Are Doing This Year (Forbes)