Finally, Netflix is not done with sharing passwords… The streaming platform has just announced the testing of a new feature aimed at charging users who share their account with people outside their household. .
A plague on Netflix
Account sharing on Netflix is an incredibly common practice, despite being strictly prohibited in its terms of service, so much so that it has actually become problematic for the company. In 2019, a study showed that the service lost 169 million euros per month due to account sharing.
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Aware of this problem, Netflix wanted to take the bull by the horns. In 2021, the platform tested a feature to prevent password sharing: when a user connected to the service using a password shared by one of his relatives, he saw a message asking him to enter a security code before being able to consult the catalog of films and series. However, it would seem that this test was not conclusive since the functionality was ultimately not deployed on a global scale.
This time, Netflix is trying a different approach.
In a blog post, Chengyi Long, Director of Product Innovation, explains, “ We’ve always made it easy for people who live together to share their Netflix account, with features like separate profiles and multiple streams in our Standard and Premium plans. Although they have been very popular, they have also created some confusion as to when and how Netflix can be shared. As a result, accounts are shared between households, which impacts our ability to invest in new series and movies for our members. “.
In order to solve this problem, the firm will test a new solution in the coming weeks in Costa Rica, Chile and Peru. Thus, users will have to add an amount of 2.99 dollars if they want to share their account outside their household. To this will also be added the possibility of ” allow people who share their account to transfer their profile information either to a new account or to an additional member sub-account – retaining view history, My List and personalized recommendations » ; this should in particular encourage people to create an account since they will be able to transfer all their data there.
Netflix is losing steam
” We will work to understand how useful these two features are for members in these three countries before making changes anywhere else in the world. concludes Chengyi Long. If for the moment nothing is certain, there are still chances that this functionality will end up being deployed on an international scale.
Netflix assures that this money is necessary to finance its blockbusters, while the streaming service begins to really struggle to obtain new subscribers. In addition to having raised its prices in North America, Netflix is facing ever tougher competition. Result: its growth is stagnating, unlike that of its rivals.