Netflix’s latest anti-password sharing test lets users ‘buy’ additional homes
Written by laserteam on July 20, 2022
(Netflix) – Netflix is testing a new way to tackle password sharing in Argentina, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic (as reported first by Bloomberg). A support page for Netflix in Honduras clearly states the test will prompt users to pay an additional fee if they use an account on a TV or TV-connected device at a location outside their primary household for over two weeks. Each additional home will cost an extra 219 pesos per month, per home in Argentina ($1.17 US), and $2.99 everywhere else.
According to Netflix, in the test areas, subscriber accounts have one primary “home” where they can access Netflix across any devices in the home, as well as travel and use Netflix on laptops and mobile devices elsewhere without the extra step. The test will allow users to purchase additional “homes,” which they choose to add or skip to use the service on TV screens.
The support page explains the process:
Add an extra home
Beginning August 22, 2022, when you sign in to Netflix on a TV outside of your home, you will see the option to add the extra home for an additional fee per month.
If you will only be using this TV for a limited time, you can watch Netflix for up to 2 weeks at no extra charge as long your account has not been previously used in that location. After that time, the TV will be blocked unless you add the extra home.
Further down the page, it explains what Netflix does to detect use at a different “home.”
How Netflix detects homes
We use information such as IP addresses, device IDs, and account activity.
If you are using a device within your included home and still see a message that says that too many homes are using your account, you can:
Make sure that the device is connected to the same internet connection as the other devices in the home.
Make sure that the device is not connected to a VPN, proxy, or any unblocker service.
Netflix first announced it would be testing ways to charge for password sharing in March, just a few weeks after it announced price increases for US customers. Netflix is also working on an ad-supported subscription option and, just last week, said it would partner with Microsoft to power its advertisements. The company has clear reasons to look for new ways to generate revenue; in April, after a subscriber boom earlier in the pandemic, it announced in April that it had lost subscribers for the first time in more than a decade. The company’s next quarterly earnings report will be released on Tuesday afternoon.
