Netflix sees no problem with password sharing as long as it’s with people you live with. But given the latest revenue statement, it looks like Netflix will need to stop the abusive password sharing. The streaming giant announced in a shareholder statement that it estimated its service was shared in more than 100 million households. But what does Netflix plan to do to prevent password sharing?
The company has already put in place a plan, valid in only a few countries. Because members on the Standard and Premium plans can share their accounts with people they live with for a long time, Netflix believes this has caused confusion about when and how you can share your account. According to a Netflix blog post, the company aims to revamp its account sharing system and hopes these changes will encourage more people to sign up for the service.
Netflix thinks it can also monetize password sharing to reduce the number of people using the service for free and gain more subscribers. To that end, it began testing two new sharing features in March 2022 that will allow users to share their accounts outside of their homes for an extra fee. For now, it seems like it’s too early to worry about Netflix being charged for sharing passwords worldwide. These two features are currently only available in Chile, Costa Rica, and Peru.
The first of these features, the Add Extra Member option, allows Standard and Premium plan members to add up to two sub-accounts for people living outside their home. Each account will have its own profile, personalized recommendations and login information. The feature will cost members 2,380 CLP in Chile, $2.99 in Costa Rica, and PEN 7.9 in Peru.
The second feature is called Transferring Profile to a New Account. Members on Netflix’s Basic, Standard, and Premium plans will be able to allow someone using their account to transfer their profile information to a new account or an extra member sub-account.
Basically, this feature will allow profiles switching between accounts to preserve account content, including viewing history, My List content, and personalized recommendations.
Will Netflix’s new subscription options work?
Netflix’s password-sharing monetization scheme may work to some extent, but it won’t completely solve the problems as members can still share their passwords with people in other households. In addition, Netflix will not force members to purchase new features.
Netflix will also need to present these innovations carefully. With the decrease in the effects after the increase experienced at the beginning of the epidemic, the platform is now losing subscribers and subscription prices are increasing. This price increase is one of the reasons why people share their accounts. It may also be the case that Netflix offers an ad-supported plan or other deal to make customers want to subscribe or keep their subscription.
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