Netflix is cracking down on password sharing at the start of 2023, in a move that will affect 100 million viewers.
Insiders say the time has finally come as Netflix battles against disappointing subscriber numbers since its rapid growth during the pandemic
Co-CEO Reed Hastings told senior executives at a company gathering that password sharing has gone on too long and the pandemic only masked how bad it truly was, the source said.
Now the 100 million people who borrow passwords face missing out on their favorite shows on the platform, although sources told the WSJ that Netflix is likely to introduce the ban with caution because it fears a backlash.
The exact policy and how it will be enforced remains unclear, but the company is expected to use IP addresses to track password sharing and shut it down, unless consumers would like to pay an additional fee to share the password
It’s a drastic turnaround for the company, which tweeted in 2017 that ‘love is sharing a password,’ and the executives are well aware consumers will not take it lightly.
‘Make no mistake, I don’t think consumers are going to love it right out of the gate,’ Co-CEO Ted Sarandos told investors this month. He also reportedly said it was up to the company to make users see the value in the service.
Netflix, which has 223 million subscribers globally, will be the first to crack down on password sharing, but media executives don’t believe they’ll be the last to do it.
Netflix’s market cap is around $130 billion,