Netflix Launches Its Password Crackdown in the U.S., Warns It Will Block Devices That Try to Access Without Paying

The end is nigh. Netflix is officially cracking down on password sharing in the United States after introducing the plan in other countries, thus ending the golden age of freeloading off of other people’s subscription services.

The streamer announced the news in an email to subscribers.

“Your Netflix account is for you and the people you live with – your household,” the company wrote, per Variety. “You can easily watch Netflix on the go and when you travel.”

The email goes on to detail the parameters of Netflix’s new plan, stating that account holders can transfer profiles on their account to new, paid members, or they can “buy an extra member” who doesn’t live in the household for $7.99 per month.

The streaming platform initially debuted the program in Canada, Spain, Portugal, and New Zealand in early 2023, during which the company did see a “cancel reaction,” a Q1 letter to shareholders disclosed.

In a Q1 earnings interview, Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters noted that extra members on an account are typically “watching as much of our shows as a normal paying account, and those folks have very strong likelihood to convert [to paid sharing plans].”

The streamer warned that it will block devices that attempt to access an account without paying after a certain time. Netflix subscribers will still be able to watch while they’re traveling outside of the country, however.

Peters went on to call the move “a really important structural shift” for the company, saying, “We’ll see membership grow through that approach. We’ll see revenue grow through it as well.”

“While this will shift some of the membership growth and revenue benefit from Q2 to Q3, we believe it will result in a better outcome for our members and our business,” Netflix said when it shared its plans for the crackdown in April. “Longer term, paid sharing will ensure a bigger revenue base from which we can grow as we improve our service.”

Peters has previously noted that this will not be a “universally popular move.”