Crackdown on Netflix password sharing begins in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain

On Wednesday, Netflix announced plans to crack down on password sharing for accounts on its streaming platform, including setting up the primary location and paying a few dollars for an additional member.

The video streaming giant, which estimated that 100 million people worldwide use a shared account, said members can now easily manage who has access to their account, transfer the profile to a new account and still easily watch Netflix. on their personal devices or connect to a new TV.

“So over the past year, we’ve been exploring different approaches to solving this problem in Latin America, and we’re now ready to roll them out more widely in the coming months, starting today in Canada, in New Zealand, Portugal and Spain. “, said the company in a blog post.

Members of Netflix’s standard or premium plan in many countries can add an additional member sub-account for up to two people for an additional CAD 7.99 (approximately Rs. 500) per month per person in Canada, NZD 7.99 (about Rs. 420) in New Zealand, EUR 3.99 (about Rs. 350) in Portugal and EUR 5.99 (about Rs. 550) in Spain, the company said.

The company lost subscribers in the first half of 2022 amid fierce competition from rivals, prompting it to take a harder look at password sharing and launch an ad-supported plan.

Netflix introduced a feature called “Profile Transfer” last year to crack down on the account password sharing phenomenon. The feature allows users who currently share an account to retain personalized recommendations, viewing history, My List, saved games, and other settings when creating their own Netflix account.

© Thomson Reuters 2023