Blame the Customers: Woke Netflix Plans Harsh Stance on Password Sharing

Following the recent news of disastrous subscriber numbers and a revenue downturn, Netflix is planning a potential crackdown on households sharing passwords.

BBC News reports that Netflix has hinted it may be taking a harsher stance on users sharing their passwords with others following a major fall in platform subscribers. Netflix recently reported that the company’s subscriber count fell by 200,000 in the first three months of the year following major competition from other emerging streaming services such as Disney+ and Apple TV+.

Netflix stock was down more than 25 percent during extended-hours trading following the report of lost subscribers, those losses extended to more than 36 percent in intraday trading on Tuesday. Netflix also took a hit to its subscriber base after it raised prices in some countries and pulled out of Russia.

The company warned shareholders that it was likely to lose another two million subscribers in the next three months. “Our revenue growth has slowed considerably,” Netflix told shareholders on Tuesday.

The company added: “Our relatively high household penetration — when including the large number of households sharing accounts — combined with competition, is creating revenue growth headwinds.” Netflix estimates that more than 100 million households are sharing accounts, in violation of its terms of service.

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings has previously described the practice as  “something you have to learn to live with,” adding that in many cases the password sharing is “legitimate” between family members.

Hastings stated on Tuesday that password sharing was making it increasingly hard to attract new subscribers in some countries. “When we were growing fast, it wasn’t a high priority to work on [account sharing]. And now we’re working super hard on it,” he told shareholders.

Netflix may sool roll out payment plans it is testing in Latin America worldwide. The aim is to have users pay slightly more in order to add extra account profiles and allow password sharing. “The principle way we have is asking our members to pay a bit more to share the service outside their homes,” said Greg Peters, Netflix’s chief product officer.

Read more at BBC News here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or contact via secure email at the address lucasnolan@protonmail.com