Netflix is investigating non-aggressive ways of limiting the number of households that share accounts.
Netflix co-CEO and co-founder Reed Hastings told investors today that the streaming giant is looking into ways to limit the number of households that can access a single account. Stressing that any such decision would be handled with care, Hasting's said that any plans to crack down on abusing the company's terms and services must feel natural to both the company and the users. "It's gotta feel like it makes sense to consumers, that they understand," Hastings said.
Though it is against the site's terms and services agreement, it is commonly accepted that many people share their Netflix account information. In a recent survey of a thousand adults conducted through Bank of America, 26% of people said that they shared their password with another household.
One method currently being tested to limit the number of people who can access an account involves a verification system where users have to confirm their information via email or text. This is a small step that is designed to ensure that people using Netflix accounts are authorized to do so, but it can be bypassed with a simple "Verify Later" option.
The decision to further investigate how to limit sharing accounts comes off the back of the streaming giant's Q1 reports, which fell short of their projections. Netflix gained just short of 4 million subscribers across the globe, though they had hoped to acquire 6 million new users. In Q4 of 2020, Netflix gained roughly 8.5 million subscribers, while in Q1 of 2020, they gained nearly 16 million subscribers.
Subscribers are crucial to help balance the books for Netflix. The company plans to spend $17 billion on content for the upcoming year. Netflix has a slew of big-ticket projects coming soon, with the adaptation of Mark Millar and Frank Quitely's Jupiter's Legacy and Zack Snyder's Army of the Dead hitting the platform in May. Beyond that, they also have TV series based on Sweet Tooth, The Sandman, and the highly anticipated live-action Cowboy Bebop show. Netflix is currently the leading online streaming provider by a large margin, despite the introduction of competitors like Disney+, Peacock and Paramount+. Netflix considers its biggest competitor to be live television, followed by YouTube.
Source: Variety