Remember how you took the Netflix password from that one friend and have been using it for years now? The streaming major has plans to put a stop to that. Netflix is testing a new feature that might stop users from sharing passwords in the future. Bad news for you but good news for Netflix!
The company is testing a new log-in warning that is said to prevent unauthorized password sharing. “If you don’t live with the owner of this account, you need your own account to keep watching,” the warning states, according to reports. Netflix says that the feature is currently being tested and hence, is only seen on limited Netflix accounts for now.
A spokesperson told the BBC: “This test is designed to help ensure that people using Netflix accounts are authorized to do so.”
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A decision has yet to be made as to whether the company will roll this out across its network. In the trial, users can verify they are allowed to access the account by a code, sent via text or email. Netflix is trying to crack down on ineligible users, though it is unclear how many people use the platform against their terms of service.
Viewers can delay the verification and keep watching Netflix. The message may reappear when they open Netflix again, and eventually, they could be required to open a new account to continue streaming. During the feature’s trial, users can verify they are allowed to access the account by a code, sent via text or email. Netflix’s terms of service state that a customer’s account for the streaming service may not be shared with individuals beyond your household.
About 40 percent of Americans say that they use Netflix with a login and password that does not belong to them. 72 percent of the people in February had said that they let someone else use their account, according to a poll by LendingTree.
Streaming platforms, including Netflix, HBO Go, Amazon Prime, and Disney+, allow users to create multiple profiles within the account, but the terms and conditions specify they are meant to be used by people in the household.
During a 2016 webcast, Netflix co-founder and chief executive Reed Hastings said: “Password sharing is something you have to learn to live with, because there’s so much legitimate password sharing, like you sharing with your spouse, with your kids, so there’s no bright line, and we’re doing fine as is.”
In October 2019, chief product officer Greg Peters said the company was looking at the issue of password sharing but said it had no “big plans to announce at this time in terms of doing something differently there”. Netflix gained almost 37 million new subscribers in 2020 and now has more than 200 million subscribers around the world. An increase of prices, a global lockdown and shows such as Tiger King and The Queen’s Gambit saw Netflix report nearly $25bn (£18bn) in revenue and almost $2.8bn (£2bn) in profit.
