Netflix Stops Password Sharing In India, How This Changes Things For You

New Delhi:

Netflix has launched a two-fold strategy to accelerate revenue: a subscription tier that includes ads, and a crackdown on password sharing. The video streaming pioneer today sent out emails to its subscribers in India asking to not share their passwords with people outside their households, a practice widely prevalent in India.

"A Netflix account is for use by one household. Everyone living in that household can use Netflix wherever they are - at home, on the go, on holiday - and take advantage of new features like Transfer Profile and Manage Access and Devices," the company stated in a release.

Earlier this year, Netflix revealed that over 100 million households were sharing accounts at the service.

How will Netflix enforce this?

Having announced a cracking on account sharing across the globe, Netflix will now allow only users on the same internet connection to access a particular account. Anybody who is not a part of the "Netflix Household" will not be able to access the content.

Those who are currently using a borrowed account will be logged out and will only get a message on how to create a new account, according to The Washington Post.

The company says it will use information such as IP addresses, device IDs, and account activity in order to determine if a device is part of a household.

A Netflix spokesperson stated that the platform will not use GPS data of users.

What can users do now?

Netflix has requested subscribers to review which devices are signed into their account. "Sign out devices that shouldn't have access and consider changing your password," the company said in its email.

The company also said that if a person is sharing their password with someone, they will now have to transfer them to a new account. The person transferred will have to buy a new subscription plan.

Netflix India currently has 4 monthly subscription plans: a mobile-only plan at Rs 149, basic plan at Rs 199, standard plan at Rs 499 and a premium tier at Rs 699.

Under the premium plan, users can watch content simultaneously on up to 4 devices.

How is the move being received?

Since it announced a crackdown on password sharing, Netflix has been rapidly gaining subscribers and has already added 6 million new accounts globally.

The pickup in subscribers came as a potentially crippling writers and actors strike hits the US entertainment industry, but with analysts saying Netflix is better positioned than its rivals to weather the storm.

"Let's face it, the crackdown on passwords is working," Navellier and Associates chief investment officer Louis Navellier said of Netflix.