'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAUACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABcAAEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABRAAAgIDAAMBAAAAAAAAAAAAAQIDBAAFEQYIIRMBAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQFEQEAAgMBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABAgMAESEE/9oADAMBAAIRAxEAPwCZ4pesbnfvHNd2S3NJuJZYJha7E37p1wYWU/Sx6T3Fj2FuwzyxnUTko7KSNrYUHh58AxjJtKvoti9ANGPtiFFcg6rtz//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Netflix is no stranger to us in 2023, especially since it has become a streaming giant for media content. It has had quite a few hits over the past few years and has generated a humongous library of premium content that we love and enjoy.
Today, it has become one of the major sources of entertainment for many owing to its vast collection of genres. Web series, movies, originals, anime, etc., anything you name, Netflix has a recommendation for it.
When it comes to subscriptions, viewers have been bypassing it by sharing their passwords with their friends. As fun as that is, Netflix has finally decided to crack down on account sharing after a long period of leniency.
It is not new for the streaming monger to have tried to shut down unauthorized users, and rumors of testing ways to crack down on account sharing are up in the air. Guess the jokes finally rubbed them the wrong way, or they may want more money to churn out new content.
Either way, a step like this is sure to affect users from all over the world once it starts hitting the platform. It might be time to consider tracking down the billions who might have your password or subscribing if you have someone else's.
Netflix has looked at different methods to prevent account sharing
Netflix is looking to put an end to user sharing or hitchhiking off of paid subscribers. After concretely placing their roots as a leading source of entertainment, they are finally ready to completely monetize their product. Traditionally, streaming platforms do not allow sharing accounts outside of a household. Testing various ways of doing so is now in the works.
Netflix's terms and conditions have let us know that the services are for our personal use and are confined within our household. This doesn't necessarily mean that users have to physically live together but rather have to verify via email that they are associated with a subscribed account that is being charged for the services.
This was in the hopes of preventing unauthorized users from logging in from random devices and availing the services at the cost of the subscribers. The chief product officer stated in 2019 that they know about account sharing and are monitoring it closely. Since then, Netflix has been developing ways to push individual subscriptions.
Pay-per-view: This was one strategy they were looking to take up to discourage users from sharing their accounts; however, they decided against it in the end. On top of subscription packages, pay-per-view would have turned away more users than it would have drawn in.
Price hikes: Increasing the pricing on subscriptions is another way of capitalizing on shared accounts. Users often share the prices by splitting them up among themselves, and thus a huge chunk of the audience has enjoyed the services at a fraction of the monthly package.
Though prices have been hiked in the past few months, the practice remains quite popular.
Sub-account charges: Netflix is thus testing out additional charges for sub-accounts for standard and premium users.
All standard and premium users might get to add two sub-accounts to their subscriptions at a certain charge in addition to their monthly or yearly packages.
This is to get users to buy their own packages in time.
With the increasing growth of other streaming platforms like Amazon Prime, Disney+, HBO Max, etc., Netflix is now looking to monetize on the major hunk of users enjoying the streaming platform for free. Typically, the decision comes with its fair share of backlash from the community.
Twitter has been exploding with tweets from users after seeing the "If you don't live with the owner of this account, you need your own account to keep watching." That was when the platform was still on the rise. Now that they have taken the lead in the business, they are in a serious position to do so.
However, a major concern for users is that if Netflix can prevent account sharing, what decisions could be made by other streaming platforms that have looked the other way so far? It remains to be seen if and how they will implement crackdowns on account sharing in the near future.
