It was widespread for a long time, although not allowed by Netflix, but explicitly forbidden, but somehow tolerated: sharing a Netflix account not only in a household, but also with friends. But in May, the streaming service finally made it clear that it was over. Using a Netflix account outside of the registered household is subject to additional charges and is only available on the Standard and Premium plans. This regulation will gradually be implemented all over the world – it started with the US at the end of May, among others. From there there is also the first analysis.
Like the magazine reported, it is still early data collected by the specialized company Antenna, which is independent of Netflix. But these paint a clear picture.
Fighting password dividers really leads to more accounts
On May 23, 2023, Netflix informed its US customers about the new rules. Right after that, Netflix had the four most new account signups since Antenna company tracked it (that’s since January 2019). So there were four record registration days. Even when enrollments skyrocketed during the original corona lockdowns in the US, there was not such a sharp increase as now.
So many people have signed up who may have used a different account before. But what about the opposite? After all, many people on social media have threatened to unsubscribe from their accounts if they can no longer share the costs with their friends. Netflix itself has announced that some cancellations are also expected. Here too Antenna was able to record a significant increase. So many people have lived up to that threat. But for Netflix, it was still worth it.
The number of cancellations is significantly lower than the number of new registrations. Compared to the 60 days prior to Netflix’s announcement of the new password rules, daily average new sign-ins are up 102%, but Netflix sign-outs are only up 25.6%. So it turns out that Netflix’s change is having the intended success, at least in the US, and is leading to the hoped-for increase in customer numbers.
Password sharing in Germany will soon be over
So if you still had the faintest hope that Netflix wouldn’t stop sharing passwords and that it wouldn’t be implemented here in Germany, you’d better say goodbye. The switchover in Germany should be completed in the coming weeks of June. Then you must, among other things, enter a main location for your account.