Netflix details password sharing clamp down
February 2, 2023
Netflix has hinted how its crackdown on password sharing will work. The company is trialling stricter rules for users in some parts of the world and it is expected that these measures will come into force in other countries, including the UK, later in 2023.
The streamer’s help page has revealed the new rules are being trialled in Central and South America to prevent password sharing between people in households outside of an account owner’s primary location.
The rules are as follows: Devices must connect to Wi-Fi at the bill payer’s primary location, usually their home. Users need to watch something on the Netflix website or app at least once every 31 days (if this is not done, their device may be blocked). To share Netflix across multiple households, you must add an extra member to your account, for an additional fee. The extra member will have their own account and password. The account holder will play a monthly fee of £2.40 a month for the added extra member. The extra member must be in the same country as the account holder.
In a report sent to shareholders in January 2023, Netflix said: “While our terms of use limit use of Netflix to a household, we recognise this is a change for members who share their account more broadly.”
It continued: “As we roll out paid sharing, members in many countries will also have the option to pay extra if they want to share Netflix with people they don’t live with. As is the case today, all members will be able to watch while travelling, whether on a TV or mobile device.”
It comes after Netflix was projected to have lost around 500,000 UK subscribers in 2022, according to Ampere Analysis.