Netflix Will Allow Members to Pay For Password Sharing in 2023

What happened

On Jan. 19, Netflix sent out a letter to shareholders highlighting the company's 2022 Q4 profit growth and plans for the future. The company discussed how it continues to work to give members more pricing options and control over their accounts. Netflix referenced the recent launch of its more affordable ad-supported plan, which brought in more paid subscribers.

Netflix also discussed its plans to allow members to upgrade their membership for an additional fee to enable them to share their accounts with people outside of their households. This change is expected later in Q1 of 2023 and will allow members to share their accounts without breaching the company's terms of service and will serve as another revenue boost for the streaming company.

So what

In its Q4 2022 letter to shareholders, Netflix reported having 231 million paid subscribers. However, the brand noted that more than 100 million households are sharing accounts, which goes against the brand's terms of use.

In the letter, Netflix said, "While our terms of use limit use of Netflix to a household, we recognize this is a change for members who share their account more broadly." The letter continued, "As we roll out paid sharing, members in many countries will also have the option to pay extra if they want to share Netflix with people they don't live with."

Now what

This is important news as many members may currently share their accounts with friends and family outside of their households, despite it being against the rules. The upcoming introduction of paid share plans could be a win for members who want to share access legally.

But this isn't necessarily bad news. This paid upgrade could offer an excellent way for friends and family to share the cost of their favorite streaming services with their loved ones. Overall, it could be a win for everyone's checking accounts, including Netflix.

If more streaming companies roll out shared plans, it could reduce the number of streaming services each household has to pay for without limiting their entertainment options. Wouldn't it be nice to only pay for one or two streaming services instead of three or more?