Netflix is About To Effectively End Password Sharing

Over the past ten-plus years, the world has shared Netflix passwords. If you have a family or a significant other or just okay friends, people share passwords. This allowed Netflix to grow to one of the largest streaming companies, with the most subscribers. 

In fact, they have conquered so much that they sort of have hit a wall when it comes to making more money. With 220+ million subscribers, there aren't more places for them to expand, so they added commercial options for cheaper and expanding into Africa. 

But now, they're circling back and coming for password sharers. 

Netflix wants to expand its subscribers. And they know they're losing out on tens of millions of people in markets they already are thanks to the sharing of passwords. 

It is the end of an era for Netflix viewersCredit: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg

Netflix is About to Effectively End Password Sharing 

The plan laid forth by Netflix is pretty simple. They'll let you share passwords, just literally in your household. And to ensure this, every device you're logged on must connect to the Wi-Fi at your primary location, and log in to watch something at least once every 31 days.

That means if you live in Los Angeles and share with your parents in Philadelphia, they would have to fly in every 31 days with their Apple TV to log on. 

While Netflix can't make them pay for their own account, they will stop their logging in and prompt them to buy one. If you're traveling, you can request a temporary code that lets you log in everywhere. But those codes will only work for a limited time. 

And if you get this wrong, Netflix will lock your account, and you'll have to contact them to resolve it. 

This all kind of sucks, I'm not sure there's a better way to put it. If you're paying for premium Netflix, you should be allowed to share your password. I understand capitalism and expansion, but they're charging $19.99 to have four devices logged in. Why can't they just escalate the price based on devices logged in? 

No word on when this will start in the United States and Europe, but it's already happening in Latin America. 

What do you think of this new policy? 

Let us know in the comments. 

Source: The Streamable