You might want to start setting up your own Netflix account soon if you have access to their content via password sharing. The streaming service is finally charging users who share their passwords with people outside the primary household.
Sharing Will Cost You
If you live in the US and you're thinking about sharing your password with a friend or a loved one who doesn't live in the same house as you, you might want to rethink that decision as it will now cost you $8 each. The new policy has taken effect on May 23rd.
If you're wondering why it was even implemented in the first place, Netflix has been transparent about its financial troubles. The company has also revealed that password sharing has played a significant role since people would get away with free streaming through password sharing.
Although, subscribers outside the US have a different deal. According to Engadget, you can add one more member outside the household with a Standard plan, and two more when you have a Premium subscription to the streaming service.
This has since been launched in countries like Canada, New Zealand, Portugal, and Spain back in February. To watch outside of the primary household, you can set up the boundaries through the smart TV app or let it do so automatically via IP address, device ID, and account activity.
In order to qualify as a household device, you need to use it to sign in and stream on Netflix using your primary house's internet connection, and you need to do so once every 31 days. Otherwise, that device will need to be verified.
Verification of a device outside your household is quite simple. Netflix will ask the outside user to enter a temporary code, which will be sent to the main account holder, as mentioned in 9To5Mac. However, it will only be valid for seven consecutive days.
If you're worried that all the saved progress and lists of shows and movies you have on your profile will be lost, you shouldn't worry. If you do decide to create your own account, you can transfer your profile easily.
You can do so by signing into the account that has your profile on the web, then going to the Accounts page and selecting the profile you want to transfer to a new account. Select the transfer link and enter the account details for the new account.
Why is Netflix Having Financial Issues?
Netflix is not the only streaming service available. Its competitors are slowly growing to be a more preferred service, and paying customers are taking their attention elsewhere. The service has also been increasing in price gradually, and people don't necessarily like that.
From April to July 2022, Netflix reportedly lost almost a million subscribers. The two main reasons are the price increase as well as the growing competition from streaming services like Disney+ and Amazon Prime, as mentioned in Global Data.
If anything, the paid password sharing might actually drive more subscribers away since there are other streaming services that don't have that policy. Although, Netflix says that it's happy with the results from its launch in February, so it might just work out for the company.
