Netflix is about to begin its crackdown on account sharers in the UK: it is expecting a backlash and a wave of cancellations from customers.
The streaming company has issued a warning to its distribution partners in the UK to enable them to prepare for potentially irate customers when the first account sharing violations are triggered.
Distribution partners include pay TV companies that bundle Netflix as part of a bigger subscription package. Netflix has been in touch with providers to give them advance notice so that customer service staff are prepared for questions and complaints.
Netflix plans to issue the first warnings to account sharers in the UK over the coming weeks. In addition to warning emails, Netflix account sharers will also see advisory messages or ‘interstitials’ placed before a programme.
In the meantime, Netflix customers are advised to set a ‘primary location’, from where anyone can access Netflix. Customers can manage which devices have access to Netflix via the ‘Manage Devices and Access’ page within their Netflix account.
▶ What can Netflix account sharers do?
- Users who currently piggyback off another person’s Netflix account will be able to transfer a profile to a new standalone account.
- Users on standard or premium plans who want to allow others to access their Netflix account will soon need to pay extra. This option is already available in a number of other countries, including Spain. There it costs €5.99 a month to add two users from outside of the household.
In April, Netflix confirmed it temporarily paused the account sharing crackdown while it evaluated the response from the first countries to experience the crackdown.
Netflix found that after an initial backlash and wave of cancellations, after a few weeks, subscriber figures started to pick up again.
Netflix previously warned account sharing affects its ability to invest in new content.
Marc Thornham