Here’s how Netflix aims to stop you from leeching off your friend’s account

We all knew this was coming, but Netflix has announced that they’re starting to introduce measures to stop users from sharing accounts. According to the company, users who live “outside of the same household” will be prompted to pay an extra fee.

“While these [household plans] have been hugely popular, they have also created some confusion about when and how Netflix can be shared. As a result, accounts are being shared between households—impacting our ability to invest in great new TV and films for our members,” said Chengyi Long, director of product innovation for Netflix.

Netflix stated that they will be testing out two new features for members in Chile, Costa Rica, and Peru. The first feature is that members on Standard and Premium plans (plans that allow more than one member to use the same account) will be able to add sub-accounts “for up to two people they don’t live with”. These additional users will also have their own profile, personalised recommendations, login, and password. They will also be offered at a lower price—CLP 2,380 in Chile, USD 2.99 in Costa Rica, and PEN 7.9 in Peru.

The second feature is that members would be able to let people who share their account to transfer profile information either to a new account or an Extra Member sub-account. They will be able to keep the viewing history, My List, and personalised recommendations. 

“We recognise that people have many entertainment choices, so we want to ensure any new features are flexible and useful for members, whose subscriptions fund all our great TV and films. We’ll be working to understand the utility of these two features for members in these three countries before making changes anywhere else in the world,” continued Long.

The prices of the additional user accounts offered at a lower price would be about RM12 if offered in Malaysia. That’s currently RM5 less than the cheapest mobile plan. The Premium plan, which costs RM55 a month, lets you share with four other users. I currently share my account with my family members, including my brother who lives outside of Malaysia. The other members live in the same household, so if Netflix decides to crack down on users in Malaysia, my brother would not be a happy camper.

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• Uh oh, Netflix has started its crackdown on account sharers