The days of sharing a Netflix password are over. Thanks to Netflix’s recent update, users are no longer able to share an account with someone in a different household.
In the past, Netflix users could create five different profiles under one paid account. This meant that five people, no matter their location, could use one account instead of each paying for one themselves.
However, Netflix has now cracked down on this, forcing users to stop password sharing. Users now have to set a primary location as their “Netflix Household,” and the location in which they watch will be tracked by the company.
Netflix has already solved the problem of users who choose not to input their address into the system. “We use information such as IP addresses, device IDs and account activity to determine whether a device signed into your account is part of your Netflix Household. If a Netflix Household hasn’t been set, we will automatically set one for you based on IP address, device IDs and account activity,” Netflix said in a statement.
This has become an exasperating setback for those who previously used other’s accounts, including junior Arianna Borhan. “My family friend and I had a deal where my family bought a Spotify Premium account and they bought a Netflix account and we shared. Now we can no longer do this since my family needs to buy our own Netflix account,” Borhan said.
As bothersome as this change may be for some, this change is beneficial for Netflix. Netflix has been competing against other streaming services such as Disney Plus or Hulu, and the money from stopping password sharing will help Netflix invest in more content. The company reports that there are over 100 million households password sharing. Assuming just half of these households decide to buy a standard account ($15.49/month) after password sharing is eliminated, that is over $700,000,000 more Netflix could make per month.
“So over the last year, we’ve been exploring different approaches to address this issue in Latin America, and we’re now ready to roll them out more broadly in the coming months, starting today in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain. Our focus has been on giving members greater control over who can access their account,” the company stated.
