Netflix cracks down on password-sharing tool; to rollout account verification feature

American OTT platform Netflix is currently testing a new feature that could signal the start of an effort to crack down on password sharing. Due to this testing, some viewers attempting to use somebody else's account are now being stopped by a screen that says, "If you don't live with the owner of this account, you need your own account to keep watching."

Commenting on this, a Netflix Spokesperson has confirmed the new feature and also informed that this feature will be getting a limited rollout at this time. 

Netflix rolls out new testing feature

After this new testing feature, in order to continue watching, the viewer is given the option of either verifying their identity (with a texted or emailed code to the account's owner) or opting to "verify later", which gives the viewer an unspecified additional amount of time to continue watching and later confirm that they are a valid account user. 

A source, who is familiar with the tests said that the extent of the rollout varies from country to country, but also informed that one reason for the feature is a desire to help protect subscribers from security concerns that can arise from unauthorized use of their account. The move potentially represents the beginning of a strategy shift by Netflix, which has historically not attempted to police password sharing.

"Password sharing is something you have to learn to live with," Netflix CEO Reed Hastings declared in 2016, "because there’s so much legitimate password sharing — like you sharing with your spouse, with your kids … so there’s no bright line, and we’re doing fine as is."

Describing the organization as "an antipiracy spinoff of the MPAA,"  THR senior editor Eriq Gardner noted, "The economics of streaming nearly demands it. Platforms are spending billions of dollars annually on both original content and rights to old shows. To become profitable, media companies will need to grow paid subscribers rapidly. AT&T boldly predicted 50 million subs for HBO Max by 2024. As part of that push, it may prove irresistible to target the more than one-fifth of young adults who, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, say they borrow passwords from people who do not live with them."