Netflix Begins Crackdown on Password Sharing in US and UK

[icanhazmac]

So if I buy or even say rent a carpet cleaner because I have a lot of carpet in my house and a friend asks to borrow it for a spill would it be illegal for me to let them use it? I throw in the rent because well that is closer to the subscription model. What about if I rent a Uhaul for moving my stuff and I let a friend use it to quickly move something either way I the renter takes responsibility. The problem with Netflix is there was nothing defined and they let it go on for years and years until they had a diminishing customer base and then suddenly there is a problem.

Not doing word play either just flat out not agreeing with labeling people as thieves when no theft actually happened whether by legal definition or not. Maybe by your standards you view it as theft, but do not label people as theives because of your opinion. If Netflix flat out stated over the years and years they have been around that the multiple screens were meant for single home use only then sure maybe ill be on your side with that, but nope they didn't they used the multiple screens and password sharing as free advertising.

Carpet cleaner: Would be based on the rental agreement. If there were no terms like "use by renter only" etc then you would be free to let others use it:

Uhaul: Same as above though I am fairly sure you would have to do all the driving.

Netflix: Their terms are clearly defined and have been for a long time. I believe they have had a "household" definition for a while now. Yes, at one point they tweeted basically in favor of sharing but they have changed their minds which as the owners of their content they are free to do.

 

[sw1tcher]

This is common sense to me. I can't use someone else's gym membership, I can't use someone else's insurance, someone else's employee discount, someone else's music streaming service...

Spotify and Apple have family plans for their streaming music services that allow up to 6 users each.

Netflix used to operate in the same manner where your child who's away at college could use the family account with no problem. Not anymore.

Spotify and Apple are being fair and understanding, and are operating using common sense. Netflix? Not so much.

 

[Choco Taco]

This is the real answer. Don't force people who only need one stream pay for four because they want 4K and not let them use the other three. Just have a base plan lower tham $20 with one stream and 4k and then pay for each extra stream.

This is another reason why this is all so stupid. There aren’t any lower-tier options for someone just watching on 1 device for themselves. Not everyone needs 4K either. They could have lower-tier 1080p/1 stream and 4K/1 stream options, which I think people would be on board for. But no, instead, this is their solution.

 

[icanhazmac]

Netflix used to operate in the same manner where your child who's away at college could use the family account with no problem. Not anymore.

Interesting. Do you know when they changed "household" from persons claiming the same legal address to "devices used in the household"?

 

[bigjnyc]

Do people actually watch TV when they are traveling? I am sorry, but when I am in a distant country, I have far better things to do than watch, "Who Wants to Fart Like a Millionaire?" You can catch up on your shows when you get home. (Honestly, I am avoiding all TV at the moment in support of the writers strike.)

Yes many many many people do... Just because you are travelling does not mean your whole day and night is filled with an activity or event. Some people spend the whole day doing things and then want to come to their hotel/airbnb/whatever and relax with some tv at night.

 

[sw1tcher]

Interesting. Do you know when they changed "household" from persons claiming the same legal address to "devices used in the household"?

Don't know when. But it was probably fairly recent. Household used to refer to the people living at an address. Now it's the devices 🤣

 

[compwiz1202]

This is another reason why this is all so stupid. There aren’t any lower-tier options for someone just watching on 1 device for themselves. Not everyone needs 4K either. They could have lower-tier 1080p/1 stream and 4K/1 stream options, which I think people would be on board for. But no, instead, this is their solution.

Yes it definitely works the other way too. You could have the basic two parent two children household who all watch on phones. So you need the streams and not 4K.

 

[Jack Burton]

With all the streaming services going up in price (which is effectively what this is), the solution is easy: subscribe to one service at a time.

If you sign up for all of them, the price is stupid and you mostly don't use most of them. Instead, sign up for one, use it till you've watched everything you want to watch, cancel and move on to the next, rinse cycle repeat.

What the services are all really doing, by increasing prices, is just ending the era where people stay signed up for everything.

With the above strategy, you max out at $20/month. Very price reasonable and entirely legal.

Yep, this is where I'm going. Some of the ad supported tiers are quite cheap, too. And once you join and leave, some channels like Hulu will lure you back later with super cheap deals for 3 months or so.

 

[lkrupp]

Don’t think any vacuum cleaner can make a bigger sucking sound.

Glad I picked now to start building out a Plex server.

So you’re choosing to be a common thief?

 

[compwiz1202]

Yep, this is where I'm going. Some of the ad supported tiers are quite cheap, too. And once you join and leave, some channels like Hulu will lure you back later with super cheap deals for 3 months or so.

And sometimes you don't even need to join. You can cancel right before you commit, and you will soon get an email with some offer.

 

[icanhazmac]

Don't know when. But it was probably fairly recent. Household used to refer to the people living at an address. Now it's the devices 🤣

Crap, last time I read up on this topic it was still people claiming the address of the account owner. Thanks for pointing that out.

I couldn't care less about what their terms are but it would be nice if they didn't change them weekly.

 

[randolorian]

Wouldn't "account" sharing be better term for this behavior than "password" sharing?

 

[Dylan33x]

It’s mind boggling that 4K is an extra charge in 2023. Personally, I‘m content with 1080P for the most part and will never pay more for a slightly better viewing experience for TV shows and movies that usually have no benefit at 4K.

What’s even worse is that during Covid they cut the bitrate (including 4K) and never bumped it back up. So you’re paying for a resolution bump, but the bitrate is like 12-20 compared to ATV and HBO’s 50ish avg

 

[Dylan33x]

+100%. Remember that the internet is 99.9% negative on everything. Notice how MR crowd is labeling Netflix as trash to justify their outrage.

Lol you’re one of the most negative people In this thread. You took a faux moral approach to people password sharing & then talked down to someone asking a genuine question that actually had an answer. (And you didn’t even answer it)

 

[jlc1978]

That tweet was from 2017. Netflix was hardly a start up after 20 years in the business (over 10 years of streaming alone) by the time that tweet was posted.

If you look at Netflix' net income, pre-2017 it was negligible and very much what one would expect form a startup streaming service, the hockey stick didn't start until 2017.

 

[Orange Bat]

What’s even worse is that during Covid they cut the bitrate (including 4K) and never bumped it back up. So you’re paying for a resolution bump, but the bitrate is like 12-20 compared to ATV and HBO’s 50ish avg

We live in a world of increasing cost with decreasing quality. To many companies are content feeding us increasingly worse products and consumers have yet to stop spending.

 

[MacWiz_007]

If you look at Netflix' net income, pre-2017 it was negligible and very much what one would expect form a startup streaming service, the hockey stick didn't start until 2017.



View attachment 2207099

From Forbes: Startups are young companies founded to develop a unique product or service, bring it to market and make it irresistible and irreplaceable for customers.

I don't consider a 20 year old company to be a "young company". We will have to agree to disagree on this one.

 

[cthompson94]

Carpet cleaner: Would be based on the rental agreement. If there were no terms like "use by renter only" etc then you would be free to let others use it:

Uhaul: Same as above though I am fairly sure you would have to do all the driving.

Netflix: Their terms are clearly defined and have been for a long time. I believe they have had a "household" definition for a while now. Yes, at one point they tweeted basically in favor of sharing but they have changed their minds which as the owners of their content they are free to do.

True it would be based on the rental agreement, and yes you are correct about Uhaul as I did forget that it is based off the license holder and you are supposed to provide the other licenses for others that may drive.

Since I am at work currently I don't have time to deep dive into the historical terms and conditions for Netflix as on their site it only goes back to 2022 and privacy back to 2021. I am not sure if this is intentional or not so currently I cannot confirm or deny your claim on that front.

 

[aParkerMusic]

So can we assume you think giving your Netflix credentials to 20 friends is perfect okay?

That’s an extreme case, not what everyone is talking about on here (i.e. sharing with your college-age child, or your grandmother…when you’re paying for multiple concurrent streams).

 

[Analog Kid]

Interesting. Do you know when they changed "household" from persons claiming the same legal address to "devices used in the household"?

Probably when they realized that your IP address indicates where you are not where you claim to live…

 

[jlc1978]

Well, according to the Netflix shills, even though you pay BMW to have Wi-Fi in your car, that Wi-Fi is for you only and you should charge everyone else who uses it that might borrow your car and then send that money back to BMW. Because even though you've paid for the Wi-Fi, letting others use it is "stealing". 🙄

Hardly. It all depends on the TOS.

My gym membership gives access for my wife and if I had kids would give them access to any location too, my wife's car insurance covers other drivers on the car and myself and her driving other cars, and Apple lets me share my music streaming

All of which are up to individual businesses. And Apple charges extra for family sharing, just as Netflix is now doing.

NO, I would not subscribe to a subscription to have my heated seats in a BMW turned on. I would hate "nickel and dime" charges . I can imagine things like "basic dashboard gages" are free, but $4.99 a month for tachometer and dials... That would be awful. I would not buy into such a system.

One advantage of some subscriptions is if you use a feature only pat of the year it s chaper to subscribe and cancel. For some features I'd prefer a subscription, rather than paying up front, as it would be cheaper; and some features I'd not buy at all.

Spotify and Apple have family plans for their streaming music services that allow up to 6 users each.

Netflix used to operate in the same manner where your child who's away at college could use the family account with no problem. Not anymore.

Spotify and Apple are being fair and understanding, and are operating using common sense. Netflix? Not so much.

Apple and Spotify charge extra for their family plans; just as Netflix is now doing. Spotify charges extra and limits it to one roof:

Family members living under one roof can enjoy up to 6 Premium accounts. Try 1 month free, only $15.99/month after.

If Grandma lives above a detached garage she would not be eligible as it is a seperaet roof.

By your argument, Netflix' plan is just common sense.

 

[Biga173rd]

I guess Netflix wants to go out of business. If your core customers are telling you it's bad, you should listen.

 

[Black Magic]

I don't find those two different situations to be equivalent, but maybe I haven't thought it all the way through.

NO, I would not subscribe to a subscription to have my heated seats in a BMW turned on. I would hate "nickel and dime" charges . I can imagine things like "basic dashboard gages" are free, but $4.99 a month for tachometer and dials... That would be awful. I would not buy into such a system.

On the flip side: I actually don't have a warm spot for Netflix. I do enjoy some of the alternative/foreign/informational stuff they have done, but I really don't like their political affiliations. I would cancel our subscription, but my better half wants to keep Netflix and drop something else.

The scenarios are related when you think about it. We have been paying for this Netflix feature the entire time and sharing was encouraged. Now, they are changing the feature we paid for to make it more lucrative for them.

You been buying cars for years getting exactly what you want. The next car you buy, expectations will have to be reset as the industry changes to a more lucrative model for them. It's a bit of a stretch but the connection is there.

 

[Black Magic]

It's strange to you that people defend a company wanting to make money. Really? Is Netflix the best, no, far from it and likely the one I watch the least (Disney+/Hulu being the most) but what there doing is reasonable.

so you are cheerleading for companies to find ways to charge you more or alter features you been paying for that make them less beneficial for you and your family?

 

[Analog Kid]

It says something that so many people think Netflix access is a basic human right…

I’m sure Netflix has looked at the numbers and is reasonably sure that they have more to gain from this move than they have to lose.