Netflix password sharing could become a thing of the past, if the latest feature the streaming giant is testing proves to be a success. A new feature, which is currently under limited release, could signal the start of an effort to prevent passwords from being shared by the streamer, who recently began to change his previously passive stance on password policing.
According to reports from GammaWire and Streamable, Netflix is testing a new feature that may prevent users from using someone else’s account.
After logging in, some Netflix viewers are seeing the following message: “If you don’t live with the owner of this account, you need your own account to continue watching.” To continue watching the content, they must first verify the account they are using with a code sent to the user’s email address or phone number. If they are unable to verify the account or choose to “verify later”, they will be asked to create their own account with a 30-day free trial.
Netflix confirmed the new feature, which is still in limited release. “This test is designed to help ensure that people using Netflix accounts are authorized to do so,” said a Netflix spokesman.
Netflix does not clarify how they determine who is in the same house or whether a shared IP address counts as belonging to the same house. According to Streamable, the test is only appearing on connected TV devices, not on laptops or phones. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the release of the trial version of this feature varies from country to country and aims to “help protect subscribers from security problems that may arise from the unauthorized use of their accounts”.
Netflix states in its terms and conditions that accounts are “for your personal, non-business use only and cannot be shared with people outside your home”, but it has maintained a somewhat indifferent attitude towards sharing passwords in the past, with Netflix CEO Reed Hastings stated in 2016: “Password sharing is something you have to learn to live with because there is a lot of legitimate password sharing – how do you share it with your spouse, with your kids…. so there is no clear line and we are doing well as they are. “
However, in 2019, Netflix product director Greg Peters said the company was trying to limit password sharing among its customers, Newsweek reported. “We continue to monitor, so we are analyzing the situation,” he said at the time, but admitted that Netflix “had no big plans to advertise … in terms of doing something different there.”
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