Netflix rolling out new password sharing restrictions in some countries

[beowulf]

I'm not sure how to take this comment, to be honest with you Beo... If Netflix wants to sue me for watching season 5 of Breaking Bad then that's their prerogative and that's the risk I take then, I suppose.

This sentiment reminds me of the early 2000s when there were commercials out there about the dangers of pirating music which was backtracked on VERY quickly.

The fact that the article you linked is stuck behind a paywall is deliciously ironic, lol. Seems like a greasy small-time lawyer trying to make a buck off of normal people. I'm not Canadian, so hopefully I'll be spared from the wrath of the Champion of the Anti-Pirates, Ken Clark.

Ya I noticed after it is a paywall. That is why I said it's not likely your would be sued but before online sharing got really crazy people though the same thing about pirating music and movies and now look what happens. They usually go after the biggest pirates so you would likely be safe but who knows. Various industries that own copyrights are pressuring governments more and more to allow them to get what they feel they are owed.

I sort of am on the side of the content creators as I have friends that are artists, photographers, etc. and I see how they have to fight at times to get what they are owed when people and companies use their creations for free and don't see an issue with it.

 

[Power Man]

Don't get why people are up in arms. Pay for what you use if you don't live at the same address. How are companies supposed to make money if 3 different households are using the same account?

Because extra profiles/screenswere included in some subscription plans and Netflix even encouraged password sharing (that famous tweet)

Now we have to pay 8 dollars per profile/screen, unless those users are living with the account owner, which defeats the purpose.

If I agree to thst my monthly bill wil’ be around $45

 

[beowulf]

Because extra profiles/screenswere included in some subscription plans and Netflix even encouraged password sharing (that famous tweet)

Now we have to pay 8 dollars per profile/screen, unless those users are living with the account owner, which defeats the purpose.

If I agree to thst my monthly bill wil’ be around $45

And you can cancel or only watch at a main location, I mean it was inevitable. The cost of making content continues to increase they need that revenue to buy and make content and we shall see if their calculated risk will pay off for them or not. Just because they did things one way for so long does not mean it will stay like that forever. I expect them to see a dip in subscribers off the bat but over time more people will join knowing the new rules.

 

[Power Man]

And you can cancel or only watch at a main location, I mean it was inevitable. The cost of making content continues to increase they need that revenue to buy and make content and we shall see if their calculated risk will pay off for them or not. Just because they did things one way for so long does not mean it will stay like that forever. I expect them to see a dip in subscribers off the bat but over time more people will join knowing the new rules.

I will definitely cancel
It definitely sucks for my sister who is watching a long series on Netflix.

4 seasons, 70 episodes per season

She is in the middle of season 1, lol

 

[beowulf]

I will definitely cancel
It definitely sucks for my sister who is watching a long series on Netflix.

4 seasons, 70 episodes per season

She is in the middle of season 1, lol

I know it sucks, I mean I look at Amazon Prime Video, I liked Yellowstone and got the first 3 seasons as part of my membership but then for season 4 I have to now buy Paramount+ which I ain't doing to do so I can't watch new episodes ohh well.

I am still interested in seeing how this all rolls out and who among the streamers is left standing in a few years from now. Peacock, Paramount +, Apple TV+, Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max, Crave here in Canada. etc. just too many to all service long term. Some will fold and others will fold into another service I am sure.

 

[Power Man]

I know it sucks, I mean I look at Amazon Prime Video, I liked Yellowstone and got the first 3 seasons as part of my membership but then for season 4 I have to now buy Paramount+ which I ain't doing to do so I can't watch new episodes ohh well.

I am still interested in seeing how this all rolls out and who among the streamers is left standing in a few years from now. Peacock, Paramount +, Apple TV+, Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max, Crave here in Canada. etc. just too many to all service long term. Some will fold and others will fold into another service I am sure.

Damn that sucks for Yellowstone

I too think other streamers will do the same thing as Netflix, but Apple. Disney and Amazon are pretty much empires and have way more more $$$$$$$$ than Netflix so maybe they won’t be as needy as Netflix but all big companies are greedy so…..

Netflix are saying they need money to produce content, but the reality - and people aren’t talking about this - is that they are not streaming in China anymore, so you can imagine they lost an important user base (so shitload of $)

 

[Pink Mist]

I wouldn't be too hard on people who share passwords ... Netflix themselves has promoted the practice in the past. Certainly their right to change their policy but it is something that the company has endorsed at times and has absolutely contributed to their viewership stats.

They've said they're going to do this in the U.S. too.

I'm interested to see how this shakes out. It'll be a real test of what's important to Netflix — paid subs vs. viewer growth — and of what viewers want — do they actually like your content or do they just watch it cause it's free via a shared password?

Me personally, I'm going to just let it go. Though I know it's the dominant service by numbers it's actually the one I watch the least so when my brother-in-laws password goes, so go I.

Reminds me a little of the crossroads that daily newspapers hit with the internet. Gave the content away for free so long that when they hit the point where they needed to make people pay, most wouldn't. Subscription revenue for many in a downward spiral since.

This is where I'm at too. It's their prerogative to enforce password sharing, but Netflix is one of many services I use, and if they start enforcing it, I'm probably going to leave since it's more of a legacy service to me as I use it the least of my other services.

They'll probably lose out even more because the people I share the account likely will cut the service and no one will purchase their own individual subscriptions

 

[barriers]

I think Netflix is underestimating how many people use the service because it was convient and people got used to it always being around. Making it more inconvenient while your sexy new competitors aren't could be just what's need to knock Netflix on its ass. Also, reminding people that they haven't used the service in 3 weeks while paying for it seems like a poor business decision as well.

We'll see how people react. Part of Netflix' appeal now is that everyone seems to have access to it which can turn a nothing program like Tiger King or Squid Game into a massive hit by word of mouth alone. I think if Netflix were to lose 5% of subscribers that would be a much bigger deal than the other streaming services losing twice that.

 

[Pink Mist]

I sort of am on the side of the content creators as I have friends that are artists, photographers, etc. and I see how they have to fight at times to get what they are owed when people and companies use their creations for free and don't see an issue with it.

"Content creators" - ugh hate that word, just say artists, art shouldn't be reduced to "content" - don't actually get much from services like Netflix. Production companies are what see the $$$$.

If you wanted to support artists more directly you would advocate for increased arts funding.

Also if you hate people consuming work for free, you must hate the public library too. Which is where I consume most of my art (90% of my books, like 25% of my films)

 

[The Crypto Guy]

I think Netflix is underestimating how many people use the service because it was convient and people got used to it always being around. Making it more inconvenient while your sexy new competitors aren't could be just what's need to knock Netflix on its ass. Also, reminding people that they haven't used the service in 3 weeks while paying for it seems like a poor business decision as well.

We'll see how people react. Part of Netflix' appeal now is that everyone seems to have access to it which can turn a nothing program like Tiger King or Squid Game into a massive hit by word of mouth alone. I think if Netflix were to lose 5% of subscribers that would be a much bigger deal than the other streaming services losing twice that.

Yea and all they would need is 5% people who arent paying now, to start paying and then it's a wash. You are assuming not one person is going to pay.

 

[beowulf]

"Content creators" - ugh hate that word, just say artists, art shouldn't be reduced to "content" - don't actually get much from services like Netflix. Production companies are what see the $$$$.

If you wanted to support artists more directly you would advocate for increased arts funding.

Also if you hate people consuming work for free, you must hate the public library too. Which is where I consumer most of my art (90% of my books, like 25% of my films)

Have indeed advocated for art funding and support them by purchasing their creations. I have 2 painting from an amazing artist friend here in Ottawa that I commissioned and I also make sure I pay for what I use.

Comparing people pirating music, streaming service or stealing pictures of photographers to libraries is real terrible and disingenuous. It's one thing to consume a book at a library and another to pirate it. Libraries still pay the authors for the books they purchase so if they have 1 copy the pay for 1 book for more well known and popular artists they might pay for 20 or 30 copies of a new novel that they know will be borrowed a lot when new. Also when it comes to eBooks the library often pays more for it or the licenses they get.

An example of what libraries pay and the authors cut and good article on libraries and ebooks etc and how they help fight or somewhat limit piracy What Do Authors Earn from Digital Lending at Libraries? | Jane Friedman.

	List price	Publisher’s net	Author’s net
Consumer ebook sale (agency model)	$14.99	$10.49 (70%)	$2.62 (25%)
Library ebook license (agency model)	$55	$38.50 (70%)	$9.60 (25%)
Library ebook license (wholesale model)	$55	$27.50 (50%)	$6.87 (25%)
Hardcover sale (library or retail)	$27.99	$13.99 (50%)	$2.79 (10%)

Rasenberger says libraries help ease industry problems with piracy, because readers who knowingly read pirated books, to avoid paying for them, will sometimes borrow from libraries instead. (A research study conducted in 2020 found that book pirates also buy books and use libraries.) However, some publishers fear consumers might get into the habit of using their library as they would an unlimited subscription service instead of visiting a retailer to purchase. In 2010, before most Big Five publishers even sold or licensed ebooks to libraries, Macmillan CEO John Sargent called library ebooks “a thorny problem” for publishers. “It’s like Netflix, but you don’t pay for it,” Sargent said. “How is that a good model for us?”

 

[beowulf]

Yea and all they would need is 5% people who arent paying now, to start paying and then it's a wash. You are assuming not one person is going to pay.

It's like anything people like to complain. people said Netflix and others would go under when they started enforcing and blocking the use of VPNs and other services to see content from around the world even if it was not licensed for the country they were watching from yet they survived that after a few weeks of furor.

 

[barriers]

It's like anything people like to complain. people said Netflix and others would go under when they started enforcing and blocking the use of VPNs and other services to see content from around the world even if it was not licensed for the country they were watching from yet they survived that after a few weeks of furor.

Hasn't Netflix' VPN ban been a complete failure? They pretty much put up a gate with no fence so everyone just walks around the gate to get inside.

 

[StrangeVision]

Gotta love corporate cash grabs. Even better are the shills who support companies taking advantage of their customers, which just further enables shitty corporate behavior (and will lead to other companies doing the same thing, making the streaming landscape worse for everyone other than investors and ownership).

 

[beowulf]

Hasn't Netflix' VPN ban been a complete failure? They pretty much put up a gate with no fence so everyone just walks around the gate to get inside.

Not sure I lost interest within a few weeks.

Gotta love corporate cash grabs. Even better are the shills who support companies taking advantage of their customers, which just further enables shitty corporate behavior (and will lead to other companies doing the same thing, making the streaming landscape worse for everyone other than investors and ownership).

Ya corporate shills lol hilarious. Cutting off those that are not paying for a service, and are thus not customers, is so wrong...

 

[Pink Mist]

Have indeed advocated for art funding and support them by purchasing their creations. I have 2 painting from an amazing artist friend here in Ottawa that I commissioned and I also make sure I pay for what I use.

Comparing people pirating music, streaming service or stealing pictures of photographers to libraries is real terrible and disingenuous. It's one thing to consume a book at a library and another to pirate it. Libraries still pay the authors for the books they purchase so if they have 1 copy the pay for 1 book for more well known and popular artists they might pay for 20 or 30 copies of a new novel that they know will be borrowed a lot when new. Also when it comes to eBooks the library often pays more for it or the licenses they get.

An example of what libraries pay and the authors cut and good article on libraries and ebooks etc and how they help fight or somewhat limit piracy What Do Authors Earn from Digital Lending at Libraries? | Jane Friedman.

	List price	Publisher’s net	Author’s net
Consumer ebook sale (agency model)	$14.99	$10.49 (70%)	$2.62 (25%)
Library ebook license (agency model)	$55	$38.50 (70%)	$9.60 (25%)
Library ebook license (wholesale model)	$55	$27.50 (50%)	$6.87 (25%)
Hardcover sale (library or retail)	$27.99	$13.99 (50%)	$2.79 (10%)

Rasenberger says libraries help ease industry problems with piracy, because readers who knowingly read pirated books, to avoid paying for them, will sometimes borrow from libraries instead. (A research study conducted in 2020 found that book pirates also buy books and use libraries.) However, some publishers fear consumers might get into the habit of using their library as they would an unlimited subscription service instead of visiting a retailer to purchase. In 2010, before most Big Five publishers even sold or licensed ebooks to libraries, Macmillan CEO John Sargent called library ebooks “a thorny problem” for publishers. “It’s like Netflix, but you don’t pay for it,” Sargent said. “How is that a good model for us?”

If you think comparing piracy to library use is disingenuous, I would suggest supporting Netflix's practices as good for artists is equally so considering it is production companies and distributors who these practices support.

The only difference between a library and piracy is scale. Like a library, piracy still requires someone to have purchased the work.

And yes, I'm aware of the fees publisher's force library's for for ebooks. it's ridiculous and the practice cuts into the funding for libraries' ability to provide public services.

Libraries are one of the few genuine public spaces remaining in an almost completely commodified hellscape and they provide a crucial public good. so arguing and reposting publishing company PR that publishers should further f*** them over is pretty sad (unless you own a publishing company)

 

[Pink Mist]

Gotta love corporate cash grabs. Even better are the shills who support companies taking advantage of their customers, which just further enables shitty corporate behavior (and will lead to other companies doing the same thing, making the streaming landscape worse for everyone other than investors and ownership).

Yeah I cannot for the life of me understand these folks shilling for the corporations.

They're not going to give you a discount for shilling lol. There's no need to lick their boots and justify their shitty behavior

 

[beowulf]

If you think comparing piracy to library use is disingenuous, I would suggest supporting Netflix's practices as good for artists is equally so considering it is production companies and distributors who these practices support.

The only difference between a library and piracy is scale. Like a library, piracy still requires someone to have purchased the work.

And yes, I'm aware of the fees publisher's force library's for for ebooks. it's ridiculous and the practice cuts into the funding for libraries' ability to provide public services.

Libraries are one of the few genuine public spaces remaining in an almost completely commodified hellscape and they provide a crucial public good. so arguing and reposting publishing company PR that publishers should further f*** them over is pretty sad (unless you own a publishing company)

Ahh your one of those I see...

 

[Bowski]

Netflix does have an adds tier now but not sure how many people have gone to that to save on the subscription costs.

If only ads were the main difference.

$5.99/month
1 device
Some movies and TV shows unavailable
720p capped

What a bargain! I'm surprised they also don't cap it at one video per day (yet).

 

[DaaaaB's]

Not sure I lost interest within a few weeks.


Ya corporate shills lol hilarious. Cutting off those that are not paying for a service, and are thus not customers, is so wrong...

They're screwing over customers who are paying too. That's already been explained to you. It doesn't affect me personally but I can see why some are upset about it.

Ahh your one of those I see...

Weak. Grow up.

 

[Osprey]

It seems to me that, instead of clamping down on password sharing years ago, they just slowly raised their prices to compensate. Whether they get $8 each from two family members in different cities or $16 from one who shares with the other, it's all the same to them. The problem is that the raising of prices just encouraged more people to share passwords, so their revenue didn't go up as much as they hoped, and they might not be able to get away with raising prices any more, so they have to start clamping down on password sharing. It seems like they've sort of backed themselves into a corner and anything that they do to try to get out of it is going to spark subscriber backlash.

 

[Neutrinos]

Ahh your one of those I see...

you're

 

[Jumptheshark]

Other companies are about to do the samething

here is the problem for me. I use my laptop, tablet and phone to watch things--I know for netflix it will affect people like me. Will be seeing how they adapt to people like me

 

[sdf]

I've thought you talk about neflix

 

[beowulf]

If only ads were the main difference.

$5.99/month
1 device
Some movies and TV shows unavailable
720p capped

What a bargain! I'm surprised they also don't cap it at one video per day (yet).

To be honest I had not looked deep into the add tier as it does not interest me at all. Companies will do everything they can to make maximum profit and until the world holds them more accountable to be responsible corporate citizens nothing will change.

I think having capitalism can be good but it has to be responsible capitalism and that basically no longer exists.

They're screwing over customers who are paying too. That's already been explained to you. It doesn't affect me personally but I can see why some are upset about it.

Weak. Grow up.

lol
I find it funny people calling others corporate shills, sounding like your average hipster when they know nothing about me. He assumed I don't support the arts (whether painters, photographers, movie makers, authors, etc.) when I do both as someone who pushes for funding to the arts and by purchasing and enjoying the labours of love artists create.

I also am someone who believes capitalism has gone bad with corporate profits and shareholder returns being put in front of taking care of employees and the world these companies exist in. There is no reason not to pay an employee a living wage or to have executives that make 10x or 20x or moe than the average employee. There is no reason for firing people via massive layoffs only to use the money to buy back stock to raise the value.

That being said I also do not agree with stealing whether a dvd or a books in a store or by using a torrent site to pirate an eBook or movie. Netflix did indeed for a long time do nothing for password sharing, even promoting it at times, as they grew as a business and I am sure that in part that was in hopes some of the people using someone else's account would in time get their own.

Anyone who thought this would last forever lives in a dream world especially when the number shows that about 40% of Netflix paying account holders share their password with someone else and sometimes even with multiple people. Netflix has every right to change their policy and now require those people to pay a fee to continue being on another house's account, whether you like it or not. Time will tell if it backfires on them but I suspect it won't. Is it a "cash grab" I could argue yes or even no, they need to expand revenue somehow to continue to make content as their options of buying rights slowly dry up as more media companies start their own streaming services. Netflix did make a massive $4.4B profit in 2022 but they saw their first decline in profit from the previous year since 2012. so they are now trying to change that and having an add tier and pushing back on password sharing is how they have decided to address the lower profits for right or wrong.

Netflix annual net income/loss ($mm)​

Date	Net Income/Loss ($mm)
2011	225
2012	17
2013	112
2014	266
2015	122
2016	188
2017	560
2018	1211
2019	1867
2020	2761
2021	5116
2022	4491

you're

Indeed.