Netflix users can no longer share their passwords for free with people outside their own households, starting May 24. The streaming service announced that it expanded its crackdown on password-sharing to the United States and more than 100 other countries and territories, including Hong Kong.
Emails sent to the streaming pioneer’s users across the world specified that, “Your Netflix account is for you and the people you live with – your household.”
Netflix also offered users two options if they wish to continue sharing their accounts with people outside their households. They can either transfer a profile to a new membership that they pay for, or they can share their account for an additional charge.
Netflix has three monthly membership categories: Basic (HK$63), Standard (HK$78), and Premium (HK$93), of which only the last two allow users to share their accounts with non-household members for an extra HK$28 a month.
Last year, Netflix revealed to shareholders that their services were being shared with over “100 million additional households”, with more than 30 million of them in the US and Canada. In February this year, the streaming giant began rolling out its password-sharing prevention measures in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain.
Header image credits: Mike MacKenzie via Flickr
