Starting in 2023, Netflix plans to crack down on password sharing and monetize account sharing by charging subscribers who want to share passwords with family and friends and forcing them to create a sub-account.
Netflix also announced that it will launch its ad-supported tier on November 3 in the US and a dozen other countries for $6.99 a month and will maintain the bingeable release model.
Netflix has lost subscribers this year for the first time in more than a decade, so it is gradually banning subscribers from sharing passwords to fix this.
During the test, Netflix asked users in Chile, Costa Rica, and Peru to pay an additional fee for a sub-account if the subscriber’s subscription was used outside of their household. It also tried to allow users in Argentina, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic to purchase additional “homes” for accounts that are not in the subscriber’s primary household.
After the test, Netflix also released a Profile Transfer tool that lets users easily transfer their personalized recommendations, viewing history, My List, saved games and other settings to a new account.
Netflix is also working with Microsoft to provide users with ads that last between 15 and 30 seconds. This new tier does not give subscribers access to Netflix’s entire library due to licensing restrictions. Basic subscribers will not be able to download anything and can only watch content in HD. The company’s ad-supported level will be available on December 8.
As competitors expand their content libraries and subscriber bases, Netflix remains confident that its own business model will surpass them.
The sources for this piece include an article in TheVerge.