At the beginning of this year, Netflix announced its plans to start charging users for sharing accounts. This new type of subscription model was also rolled out in Latin America for testing. It seems that Netflix will be releasing this feature globally in 2023.
This new feature will require users to set a primary residence when creating an account. People who then watch Netflix from another address for more than two weeks will be charged an account-sharing fee of $2.99/month.
In the pilot program, the $2.99/month covered any two other users outside of the primary residence. For any users who decide that they want to stop sharing their accounts with users outside of their homes, there is a new Netflix profile transfer feature that will make it easier to transfer your profile to a new account.
Another point to note is that this account-sharing charge only seems applicable to those streaming Netflix on television. Viewers who stream Netflix from their smartphone, tablet, or laptop will not be charged extra. This means if you travel frequently, you can still enjoy your Netflix on the go without incurring additional account-sharing charges.
This announcement came shortly after the streaming giant shared its latest quarterly earnings. The company’s earnings have recovered and are looking much better after the subscriber slump reflected in the previous quarter.
During the same announcement, Netflix also stated that they are looking at expanding their services even more by launching their own cloud gaming service. In November, they will also launch a new ad-supported tier in selected countries that include Canada, Mexico, Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, the UK, the US, and Spain.
The possibility of charging users for sharing their accounts has been received with mixed feelings. However, in order for the service to continue providing quality content, they need to ensure all users are contributing, and at $2.99/month, it’s not that bad.
