It has been banned for some time, but many people still share their Netflix accounts with friends or acquaintances who do not live in their own household. Now the streaming service wants to take tougher action against account sharing. Is the end of the shared Netflix account near? An analysis by Anna Schmid.
Anyone who logs into “his” Netflix account often cannot speak of “his” Netflix account at all. Many users share their account with family members, friends and acquaintances. Industry experts estimate that in the US alone, 30 percent of subscribers share their passwords.
This is usually not allowed. Attorney Christian Solmecke explained in an interview with CHIP: “With Netflix, users are only allowed to share the account with people who live in the same household – i.e. with their family or the flat share (point 4.2 in the terms and conditions). Friends or relatives who live in other apartments However, according to the official terms and conditions, they are not allowed to use the same Netflix account.”
Other platforms, such as Sky or DAZN, handle it in a similar way. However, this does not necessarily mean that they penalize their subscribers if they do not comply with the terms of service. Lawyer Solmecke recently saw no evidence that streaming providers like Netflix are consistently taking action against illegal account sharing.
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Netflix’s attempts to prevent the disclosure of login data to unauthorized parties have so far been rather half-hearted. An example: In early 2021, US media reported security prompts that some users were shown when logging in.
“Start your own Netflix today. If you don’t live with the owner of this account, you’ll need your own account to continue watching,” their screens read. This includes a request to confirm your own account – using a code sent by email or SMS. It was only a test though.
However, industry experts see it as a first step towards tighter control of the terms of use. Netflix should have done the second a few days ago. Because the streaming service will test a new function in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru in the coming weeks. If you share your account with others, you have to pay a surcharge.
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New account-sharing model could bring Netflix a lot of money
As reported by Variety magazine, account holders can legally add up to two additional people outside of their household to their subscription. Wall Street analysts assume that the tougher crackdown on password sharing could bring Netflix nearly $ 1.6 billion if the model is rolled out globally.
Income that the streaming service can use well. After all, the growth of the film and series giant seems to be stagnating. The current business figures show: Netflix was able to gain just 8.3 million new subscribers between the beginning of October and the end of December – despite mega successes like “Squid Game”.
For the first quarter of 2022, the company expects 2.5 million new customers – analysts had predicted 5.9 million additional subscriptions. So it’s hardly surprising that Netflix is experimenting with new revenue streams. The streaming giant had recently not ruled out a cheaper subscription version in which users have to endure advertising.
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DAZN made a name for itself with an aggressive mail campaign
But it could also be related to the behavior of the competition that Netflix now apparently wants to take more consistent action against unauthorized account sharing.
Sports streaming provider DAZN, for example, recently made a name for itself with a provocative campaign. As the “Spiegel” reports, several customers received an e-mail in which they were informed about usage behavior “that may not correspond to our terms and conditions”.
It goes on to say, “To protect your account, we’ve temporarily signed you out of all devices and are asking you to reset your password.” It is obvious that DAZN wants to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of login data. Actually, only the account owner can use the streaming platform.
A statement that DAZN sent to “Spiegel” also goes in this direction. “We have proactively contacted some users to ensure their account information remains secure and is not being used by anyone else in violation of our Terms of Service,” it said.
How long will users get by with account sharing?
Ultimately, a look at Netflix and DAZN shows that it may not be so easy to share streaming accounts with others in the future. It is quite conceivable that Netflix will turn the test in South America into a global project.
However, whether the crackdown will pay off financially for the platforms is another matter. Because some analysts pointed out to “Variety” that not every “co-subscriber” is forced to create their own Netflix account if they can no longer use a friend’s.