Netflix against account sharing: TV only in your own home

Netflix has presented further measures to prevent account sharing. In selected countries, Netflix can only be used on televisions in your own home from August. This is currently being tested in Argentina, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.

The restriction should only affect televisions, mobile devices such as cell phones and laptops should not be restricted. According to Netflix, there is also some leeway on TVs: Once a year and location, you should be able to watch Netflix on a TV outside of your own home for two weeks. If you have exceeded the workload, the app blocks the playback of content on the external devices.

Netflix is ​​thus accommodating holidaymakers, for example: If you go to your old home or holiday home, you can use Netflix there once a year for two weeks without restrictions. However, if you want to watch the streaming service regularly on TVs outside of your main residence, you will be asked to pay.

In the basic account, you can add a second home for between $1 and $3. In the standard subscription you should be able to add up to two additional locations, in the premium plan up to three. For a better overview, Netflix would also like to add a new tab to the account settings, where users can manage their home and their playback devices.

IPs and device IDs

According to the support page, Netflix marks a home based on the IP, different device types are recognized via device IDs. If you use VPN services regularly, you could also have problems.

It is still unclear whether Netflix plans to start the announced restrictions worldwide. The streaming service has been testing comparable restrictions in Chile, Peru and Costa Rica for months.

There, customers have the option of including people outside their household in their subscription for a small additional fee. This is not officially allowed with the standard subscriptions: “A Netflix account is intended for people who live together in one household,” says the streaming service.

According to the Netflix definition, separated partners or family members are not households and are therefore not allowed to use a joint account. According to the US market research institute Magid, 33 percent of all Netflix users pass on their access data to at least one person.

Netflix crisis

Netflix expects additional income from strict action against account sharing after the business figures recently fell short of expectations. The company had to cut 150 jobs in May, followed by 300 more in June. In the first quarter of 2022, 200,000 paid subscriptions were lost, among other things due to the withdrawal from the Russian market. On Wednesday night, the streaming service presented new figures, according to which the decline in subscriptions in the second quarter was less than expected.

In addition to curbing account sharing, Netflix wants to attract new users with a cheaper, advertising-financed subscription. The streaming service wants to work with Microsoft as an advertising partner for this.

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