The most popular Netflix series is Squid Game. Image source: NETEFLIX
The long-promised crackdown on password sharing by Netflix has begun in important markets like the US and the UK.
A new policy forcing subscribers to pay a monthly price of £4.99 (or $7.99 in the US) if they want to share their account with others who don’t live in their households has been disclosed by the streaming giant.
Subscribers who choose to do so will be informed of this new policy.
This policy seeks to boost subscription numbers.
However, in certain nations where this approach has previously been tried out, some people are expressing reluctance owing to the added expense.
When it added a fee of 5.99 euros (£5.27) for an additional account in Spain, Netflix lost over a million customers in the first quarter of the year, according to Kantar.
Customers in 103 countries and territories, including Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, Mexico, and Singapore, received an email from Netflix on Tuesday informing them of the policy on account sharing.
Netflix indicated that while it anticipated the prospect of cancellations as it expanded this program, in the long run, adding paid sharing would contribute to a larger income base, allowing them to improve their services and support future growth.
Following the implementation of the account sharing adjustments in February, Netflix announced that the size of its premium membership base in Canada had increased. This resulted in a rise in revenue growth.
Despite its stated policies, Netflix has confirmed that more than 100 million households globally exchange passwords.
As its subscriber growth slows and it faces increased competition in the streaming industry, the firm hopes to take use of this current audience to increase income.
With large firms like Disney and Amazon joining the fray along with a plethora of other competitors, the streaming business has grown increasingly competitive, posing a threat to Netflix’s hegemony.
These entertainment behemoths are aggressively vying for consumers’ attention and subscriptions as they feel the effects of rising pricing in many areas of their lives.
Netflix has been experimenting with numerous methods to draw users. In an effort to draw in new users, it has slashed pricing in 116 countries and created a more reasonably priced streaming option with commercials.
The paid sharing scheme, which Netflix started experimenting with in a few regions last year, has been growing alongside its pricing tactics.
The business wants to broaden the program’s appeal by informing customers about the account sharing policy in certain of its important markets.
With 233 million subscribers worldwide, Netflix is currently one of the most popular streaming services.