Netflix has confirmed its crackdown on password sharing will be rolled out immediately.
Bosses of the streaming service said the tightening of its rules will begin in the US before being rolled out across other countries. Harsher restrictions are expected to reach the UK between April and June, meaning password sharing will be banned by July.
Under the current rules, Netflix subscribers are told they're not supposed to share their passwords with people outside their household. However, this hasn't stopped users from giving their account details to friends and family so they can save money.
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In a statement released today, Netflix said: "We learn more with each rollout and we've incorporated the latest learnings, which we think will lead to even better results. To implement these changes, we shifted out the timing of the broad launch from late Q1 to Q2.
"We are planning on a broad rollout [of the password sharing crackdown], including in the US, in Q2. We're pleased with the most recent launches of paid sharing, and while we could have launched broadly in Q1 [the first three months of 2023], we found opportunities to improve the experience for members."
Netflix first confirmed plans to “monetise” paid-for account sharing globally in a letter to shareholders in October 2022, the Mirror reports. The subscription service introduced fees for password sharing in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain last month.
Canadian subscribers can add an extra member as a "sub account" for CAD$7.99 (£4.78) and in New Zealand the charge is NZ$7.99 (£3.97). Portugal subscribers can add a "sub account" for €3.99 (£3.51) while Spain customers must spend €5.99 (£5.27).
Netflix hasn't said how much it plans on charging in the UK. It follows a trial last year in countries including Argentina, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala.
The company today confirmed an additional 1.75million subscribers signed up to its service during the first quarter of 2023. This means the total number of subscribers now stands at 232.5 million - up 4.9% from the final three months of 2022.
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