Netflix expands password-sharing crackdown worldwide
- The era of free Netflix password sharing outside subscriber households is coming to an end
- Subscribers can add extra users for a higher price or transfer viewing profiles to separate accounts
Netflix has expanded its crackdown on users sharing passwords with people beyond their immediate family as it seeks to shore up revenue at the leading streaming television service.
“A Netflix account is for use by one household,” the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
Netflix said early this year that more than 100 million households were sharing accounts at the service, “impacting our ability to invest in great new TV and films”.
Netflix has experimented in a few markets with “borrower” or “shared” accounts, in which subscribers can add extra users for a higher price or transfer viewing profiles to separate accounts.
On Tuesday, it announced it was expanding the policy to more than 100 countries.
As growth at Netflix cooled last year, the Silicon Valley-based streaming giant set out to nudge people watching for free with shared passwords to begin paying for the service without alienating subscribers.