Streaming platforms have long been grappling with how to handle password sharing and whether to marshal the resources to tackle it. The update comes as Netflix’s viewership has splooshed during the pandemic, reaching 200 million users last month and with its stock up nearly 50 percent since last March. Netflix and other streaming platforms like HBO Go, Amazon Prime and Disney+ permit users to create multiple profiles within the account, but the terms and conditions make it clear they are only to be used by people in the same household.įor now, there is no confirmation whether the trial will be rolled out across the network. If they can’t confirm they’re an authorised user, viewers will be prompted to set up a new account.

Users can also choose to verify at an undetermined later time. In the trial, users are able to verify they are allowed to access the account by code sent via email or text message. “This test is designed to help ensure that people using Netflix accounts are authorised to do so,” said a Netflix spokesperson. Streaming giant Netflix is considering a crackdown on password sharing, in what is likely to be unsettling news to the platform’s legion of freeloaders who enjoy the service through the goodwill of family and friends.Ī trial appeared on multiple user accounts which said: “If you don’t live with the owner of this account, you need your own account to keep watching.”

The streaming giant is rolling out alerts asking users to verify they are authorised to watch on the account to be able to keep viewing.

Sharing netflix accounts