According to a Netflix report from the rest of the world, Netflix’s test to cut down on password sharing has perplexed some viewers. In March, the streaming service began testing password-sharing solutions in Peru, Chile, and Costa Rica, requiring customers in those countries to pay an extra price to allow streaming for those outside of their home who use the same account.
When I met with a group of over a dozen Netflix customers in Peru, the rest of the globe reported that most consumers were not advised of the policy change via email or Netflix notification.
It’s been less than two months since Netflix announced it. The source also discovered that Netflix enforcement differed by user, with some users on shared accounts reporting skipping validation prompts with no consequences for the account holder. Another user informs the rest of the world that they were unaware of a policy change and that they have continued to share their account with no problems.
There will be a crackdown on password sharing in the near future.
There’s also some ambiguity about Netflix’s definition of a “household” (since some people consider their immediate family to be part of it), and it appears that Netflix is aware of it. According to reports, an anonymous account manager in Peru was asked to supply verification codes for subscribers who called because someone in her family was using her account from another place. This allows people who do not live in the same household as the subscriber to continue using the shared account for free.
“We’ve known for five years that ‘a Netflix account is for people who live together in a single household,” Netflix spokeswoman Kumiko Hidaka stated in an email to The Edge. “We have advised the millions of users who are actively sharing accounts in these countries by email, but due to the seriousness of this change, we are gradually ramping up in-product alerts.” So far, we’ve been pleased with the response.”
An additional account is less expensive than creating a new account from scratch (which is meant to make it seem more like a deal and less like a way for Netflix to get a little more subscriber growth). Netflix costs an extra CLP 2,380 ($2.89) in Chile, $2.99 in Costa Rica, and PEN 7.9 ($2.13) in Peru to add up to two users who are not in the same home as the account holder.
Netflix’s latest earnings report revealed that it has lost subscribers for the first time in almost a decade, despite the fact that it still has 74.58 million users in the US and Canada and 222 million worldwide. As it strives to recruit new subscribers — and battles to keep them in the face of increasing competition — the corporation will undergo some modifications. Netflix executives reportedly warned employees that the company would launch a lower, ad-supported plan within the year, offering a less expensive method to stay in business after long-term members witnessed near-annual price rises. It’s also looking at live streaming to compete with Disney Plus, which is constantly expanding.