Love is sharing a password, Netflix once declared. Sadly, those feelings have changed, with the streaming service all set to bring in an anti-password sharing plan that will stop users from being able to share their accounts with family and friends. According to The Streamable, Netflix will bring in these new regulations soon, with the Netflix Help Center now containing “a page outlining how your account should be shared, and how it shouldn’t.”
So, what does this all mean? Well, Netflix accounts will still be shareable “but only within one household.” In order to keep track of this, Netflix will require users to connect to the Wi-Fi at your “primary location” and make use of the streaming service “at least once every 31 days.” Otherwise, your account will be blocked. Which already sounds like it will cause big problems.
All of this means that Netflix users will no longer be able to share accounts with people who do not live with them, which is something that many users currently do. “Netflix will prompt users who try to sign into your account elsewhere to sign up for their own account instead and block their access until they do,” the new advice reads.
Netflix Could Block Your Account Even if You’re Not Password Sharing
Things get increasingly more complicated when it comes to using Netflix while traveling, as signing into the service from outside your home “may lead to the device in use being blocked from Netflix.” In an attempt to work around what sounds like a complete headache that could ruin your holiday, “users who want to use Netflix on a hotel smart TV, company laptop, etc. can request a temporary code from the service when signing in. This will give them access to their account for seven consecutive days.” Which frankly sounds like more admin than anyone wants to be doing while traveling.
Even just having Netflix at home could become irritating for some, as users will now need to sign in to their accounts once every 31 days to avoid their account being blocked. So long as you keep up, Netflix will mark your home device as “trusted.” And, should you watch the latest series of Stranger Things and then not come back to Netflix for more than 31 days, you will need to contact the streamer to get your account unblocked.
There once was a time when Netflix dominated the streaming world, but with new platforms emerging all the time, the service is clearly looking for ways to get ahead of the competition and gain as many users as possible. But is this really the way to do it?
Netflix themselves have already admitted that they expect to lose subscribers following the move towards anti-password sharing, with co-CEO Greg Peters saying, “This will not be a universally popular move... [There will be] a bit of cancel reaction to that.”
Ultimately, Netflix can only hope its 2023 slate is enticing enough to keep users tuning in.