Netflix has officially begun its crackdown on account sharing in the UK by sending out emails to customers who are sharing their accounts with people "outside their household".
The streaming giant confirmed earlier this year that it plans to roll out a block on password sharing on its service which will likely affect a huge number of users - meaning that they will either have to pay more to continue watching or else face being booted off the platform. Although Netflix's terms currently state that users are not supposed to share their passwords with people not in their household, this has not deterred millions of subscribers from giving their account details to friends and family to save money.
But this is soon set to change, as a statement released by Netflix on Tuesday confirmed: "Starting today, we will be sending this email to members who are sharing Netflix outside their household in the United Kingdom." The email in question begins by reminding users that "your Netflix account is for you and the people you live with".
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The email suggests that users who want to share the service with someone outside their household can now buy an extra member for £4.99 a month extra, a new feature recently made available by Netflix as part of their efforts to monetise account sharing. Alternatively, customers who are sharing an account with someone who doesn't live with them can opt to transfer their profile to a new membership that they pay for.
Netflix added: "A Netflix account is for use by one household. Everyone living in that household can use Netflix wherever they are – at home, on the go, on holiday – and take advantage of new features like Transfer Profile and Manage Access and Devices.
"We recognise that our members have many entertainment choices. It's why we continue to invest heavily in a wide variety of new films and TV programmes – so whatever your taste, mood or language and whoever you're watching with, there's always something satisfying to watch on Netflix."
A Standard Netflix subscription currently costs £10.99 a month, which allows users to watch and download unlimited movies and shows on up to two devices at a time, as well as offering the option to add one extra member from outside their household. There's also the cheaper Basic package for £6.99 a month, which allows Netflix on one device, or the cheapest advert-based tier for £4.99 a month which offers a more limited selection from Netflix's library with ads on up to two devices.
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