Netflix users are canceling their memberships due to new password sharing rules

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Netflix has been threatening to crack down on password sharing for well over a year now, ever since they had their first quarter with a net decline in users in March of 2022. Now that change is here. Netflix says people can only share an account in one physical household, with one internet connection. Additional members logging in anywhere else can be added for $7.99 a month. The company doesn’t allow any exceptions to this policy. However, this doesn’t apply (yet) to smartphones or tablets, you should be able to stay logged in on those until Netflix figures out what to do with them. This change is not going over well with Netflix subscribers, and some people are even cancelling their memberships over the new fees:

Netflix’s password crackdown has arrived in the US, and impacted users are already complaining about the new policy.

On Tuesday, Netflix announced that it would no longer allow American users to share an account between households. The streaming platform said account holders could “buy an extra member” for an additional $7.99, per Insider’s Beatrice Nolan.

As the restriction begins to impact users in the US, complaints are rolling in from frustrated subscribers who don’t appreciate the change. Some have even gone as far as outright canceling their memberships and encouraging others to do the same.

Impacted users are sharing the message that appears onscreen when an account is accessed from outside of the membership holder’s home. One user said they were prompted to verify their identity when they tried to watch Netflix while at a hospital.

“I canceled my Netflix membership so fast. it’s the principle. They already charge us to share our accounts, that’s how it went from $8 to $15,” one user wrote. “Like no, you’re not charging me to tell me who I’m allowed to share my password with f–k Netflix.”

The frustrated voices echo the complaints that first arose when the company opted to move forward with its “Extra Member” plan in February. The move was introduced as a way to help Netflix return to growth after suffering subscriber losses in 2022.

[From Business Insider]

The example in the article where someone is trying to watch Netflix at the hospital is one of several reasonable exceptions to this new policy that I could think of. What about active duty service members who are deployed overseas? What about travel nurses, flight attendants, pilots, or long haul truck drivers? There are a lot of people who aren’t logged into a “home” WiFi every 31 days for good reason. Should they be penalized because they spend extended time away from their families?

Also, Netflix raised prices already in order to charge people for sharing. Celebitchy covered their pilot program for this change back in 2022. Now there’s another charge on top of that. It’s Disneyland-level nickel-and-diming. While some reports say Netflix is profitable, it’s been underperforming and its stock has been on the decline. It currently has about $14 billion in debt. Its net income for the fiscal year 2022 was $4 billion, a 16% decline year-over-year. So at some point it’s going to have to raise more revenue, continue to slash its production budgets, or both in order to pay off that debt. Could that be the real reason why they’re charging people to share passwords?

I’m not sure I’ll keep my Netflix account active anyway. I mostly use it to watch old shows like Gilmore Girls. Netflix used to have  strong in-house series, but whenever I log on, I’m largely uninspired. Netflix is now betting on the strategy of quantity over quality. But more variety isn’t the way to lure subscribers in, if that variety is mostly mid-to-forgettable. Netflix has forgotten that what keeps subscribers loyal is content so good that they can’t imagine their lives without it. That’s a high standard to reach and it also means Netflix to provide an environment where the people who make the shows–including writers!–can feel free to take creative risks. That may have been true at Netflix for a while but every golden age must end.

Whew Netflix is making a LOT of enemies. Kids away at school, kids who live with different parents depending on the day, grandparents who live elsewhere but have their own accounts, people who travel for work…like girl. All this and half your mess can’t get a season 2??? Be fr

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These are photos from XO, Kitty, Firefly Lane and Queen Charlotte, which are among the top ten shows on Netflix now. Credit: Netflix and Getty

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