Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Netflix Loses Subscribers for the First Time in 10 Years, Blames Account Sharing
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I think Hollywood may also be to blame. With the theaters still not producing the revenue they once were, Hollywood has been trying to leverage the streaming services to make up for this reduced revenue. The streaming services still cost less per month than the average single consumer would pay if they went and saw one movie (with perhaps a drink/popcorn). Movies are in some cases going direct to streaming or at least hitting streaming much quicker than they did pre-covid.
I can assure you, I did not cancel my Netflix account because I am sharing with someone else. I cancelled it because the cost exceeded the value of the product. Maybe I'll turn it back on for a month or two a year, once all the thing I want to see are out there, but I don't miss it.
Netflix is in a crowded market space right now with so much competition. Hopefully they will be smart about this and not overreact. Clamping down on sharing and/or raising prices will only alienate customers, who will just cancel and fall back on the many other streaming options they already have.
I'm already looking to cut a service. It will most likely come down to which one makes me mad first.
I'm already looking to cut a service. It will most likely come down to which one makes me mad first.
Try it sometime, you might find yourself surprised. Watching from sofa or recliner in a typical living room setup video it's not discernibly different from any of the other streaming services such as hulu or amazon or youtubetv on either roku or appletv4k.
I'm sure if I were sitting two feet away from a 32" computer monitor to watch stuff it'd show a noticeable difference, but that's not how I watch stuff.
Edit - sure the price diff from basic to standard isn’t much, but if TMobile weren’t giving me Netflix Basic at no cost I wouldn’t subscribe at all. So I’m not interested in paying anything extra when 1 stream is all I need and the video quality is “good enuf” for my needs
Last edited:
No, just….no…STOP.
The fact you and others are addicted to crummy resolution, portrait video, designed to be addictive visual crack say just about everything about the state of affairs in 2022.
Well, yeah, but they already charge more to be able to watch more than one thing at a time, why should they care where you are? My wife has a few conferences she's going to this year, would it freak out about "sharing" if we're watching things in different states for a few days?
Yes, because Netflix is such a necessity of life that you would try to justify basically stealing their service by using someone else's account instead of paying for your own
There is simply no justification. It's dishonest.
EDIT: If you're going to disagree, then you need to actually explain how it's not dishonest instead of simply "reacting" with a thumbs-down emoji without providing a rational counter-argument. Good luck!
Last edited:
If they continue to raise their prices and push quantity over quality programming, I can see my wife and I canceling--granted we'll re-subscribe and binge shows we want watch and then cancel again. Over the past couple months, I have been watching content on Hulu/HBO Max/Apple TV+ over anything that Netflix has released.
That said, I don't think this is just the beginning of Netflix seeing their subscriber base shrink. Hint: Having video games on their service isn't the answer.
That said, I don't think this is just the beginning of Netflix seeing their subscriber base shrink. Hint: Having video games on their service isn't the answer.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
Netflix is not run by idiots. I'm sure they'll figure it out in a way that supports THAT scenario but somewhat deals with what amounts to piracy for the other scenario. For example, in a family situation, there are profiles for each family member. When you and your wife are at home, she probably watches through her profile and you through yours. That helps keep favorite shows based on the tastes of each person. Thus, most of her watching is at the address that is paying for Netflix. She goes to a conference, she probably still watches through her profile. Netflix could build in some "travel" away time for profiles.
On the other hand, if someones "wife" is permanently away from the home address that is paying for Netflix, it's highly unlikely "she" is at a perpetual conference. So that scenario may soon get a notice to "buy your own" or perhaps the core address can pay some added fee to make permanently away address #2 work as it does now for that forever away from home "wife." Netflix is already piloting an "extra fee" test in a few countries to see how well this works.
Netflix is smart enough to mostly figure it out. You don't build up a base of 222 million subscribers by sheer luck. Whatever the solution, it will certainly NOT be one that requires subscribers to only watch when at home.
Last edited:
Macrumors comments once suggested Apple TV+ will beat Disney+ and Netflix within 2 years.
Amen. They've pushed quantity over quality, kept hiking the price and lost exclusive content that drew people in. With the continued 'Balkanization' of streaming, Netflix will eventually become something akin to DirectTV soon (if it hasn't already)
People have been sharing accounts since day one, that has nothing to do with it. It's because there's too many streaming services. Netflix was a great services when they had all the networks and studios. Now that everyone and their mother has a streaming service, it's just too much. Streaming is great if it's cheaper than cable. So anything more than 2 or 3 services tends to defeat the point.
Netflix trying to blame subscriber losses on everything but their rate hikes.
Maybe Netflix should stop raising prices so often and then maybe they wouldn't experience a reduction in subscriber numbers.
Nope. What's really happening: the various large media companies are setting up their own streaming services (e.g. Peacock, Paramount+ and the current Hulu) and taking away streaming rights that used to belong to Netflix. As such, Netflix has less new content to stream.
Yeah, if you're a 13 year old girl. In what world do you live in where you think silly TikTok videos are going to replace long-form media? "3-10 minute, vertical video, mini series shows" have their place, but they'll in no way shape of form 'replace' the experience of watching fully immersive, high production movies.
Just a thought — if they fear the continued price hikes is a reason for the subscription drops, how soon will ads begin appearing to help curb the price hikes?
Would ads be the breaking point for many users?
Would ads be the breaking point for many users?
We had 2 Netflix accounts because of the number of devices/users our family has. Netflix raised their prices so I cancelled one subscription. The amount of new, relevant content vs the cost of the subscription is making me consider cancelling our remaining account. In addition, the combined cost of Netflix, Hulu, Disney and other broadcast subscriptions is making me reconsider the value of going back to a cable provider. Individual providers are getting greedy for the value they offer.
Yes, because Netflix is such a necessity of life that you would try to justify basically stealing their service by using someone else's account instead of paying for your own
There is simply no justification. It's dishonest.
You want to talk dishonest... Look at the Netflix pricing page. Notice they list it by "Number of screens you can watch on at the same time" and don't even mention it is per household anywhere on the page? That and as others have mentioned they used to promote sharing of passwords/accounts.
| Basic | Standard | Premium | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost* (United States Dollar) | $9.99 | $15.49 | $19.99 |
| Number of screens you can watch on at the same time | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Number of phones or tablets you can have downloads on | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Unlimited movies, TV shows and mobile games | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Watch on your laptop, TV, phone and tablet | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| HD available | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Ultra HD available | ✓ |
Netflix’s pricing is insane. They have made it where you have to pay for their highest tier if you have multiple users or have a 4K TV set.
So the experiment in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru has probably shown people massively leaving Netflix - for pricing reasons. Which is totally understandable. Ones they start blocking shared accounts across the rest of the world the downfall will continu even steeper. Bye bye Netflix!
Yes, because Netflix is such a necessity of life that you would try to justify basically stealing their service by using someone else's account instead of paying for your own
There is simply no justification. It's dishonest.
EDIT: If you're going to disagree, then you need to actually explain how it's not dishonest instead of simply "reacting" with a thumbs-down emoji without providing a rational counter-argument. Good luck!
Totally agree. I know so many Family and friends using other peoples login details, I feel as though I have been subsidising these freeloaders for some time but no more. That's my perception at least.